Persona: Lux Aeterna
by Havoc Wing
Summary: Seta Souji returns to Inaba after his time home in Okinawa runs out three years after the serial murders of the Yasoinaba region. His parents are away again, and they aren't coming back. Souji must learn to deal with recent tragedy, and a new threat.
1. Lux Aeterna: The Tower

Chapter I

THE TOWER

**

November 19th 2015

Sunday Night

8:21 PM

**

"Finally, done.." he said as he placed the pen down beside the paper he completed on accounting for school. It was a take home final that had to be finished and turned in by tomorrow morning so he would be able to prepare for departure and still pass the class. He proofread his work, starting at the top, where the first line read….

Name Seta Souji

**

November 20th 2015

Monday Morning

9:19 AM

**

"….. the essay, bibliography, general ledger page, the invoices, and inventory pages are at the end of the booklet behind the final exam" Souji mentioned as he turned in the final project early.

"I'm so sorry to hear about your parents Seta-san. But I'll correct this as soon as I can and I'll email you the results; I expect it to be perfect having known you!" his professor said with a soft smile.

"I wish you the very best in Inaba and if you ever need help or have questions in business management, you know how to reach us here at the school…"

As unprofessional as it was, his professor stood from her chair at her desk to give her student a hug before her first lecture began. He was her best student in years, and for some reason she felt Souji was more of a distant nephew or little brother. They always got along, and Seta always had the answers and procedures to the problems.

"Thank you Hanako-san. I appreciate everything. And thank you for the letter of recommendation and for working out the kinks about transferring credits. You're making life so much easier…"

"It's the least I can do for my favorite student!" the professor teased.

"You'd better get going or else you'll have to answer to your class! Get goin'…. Good luck Seta".

**

4:42 PM

**

"Calm down, calm down! I'm sure I won't be the only sad one here but I have some unfortunate news…" said the head of classroom 6C the I.T of Japan in Okinawa Prefecture.

The muttering and sidebar conversations of the college classroom were pierced to silence when the professor mouthed the words…

"Seta won't be with us as of the end of this semester".

The sidebars continued but much louder until a distinct voice shot through directed towards the professor. "Professor Hanako, is something wrong with Souji?"

The professor was a medium height brunette always clad in business casual attire; which usually consisted of a black or khaki skirt just above knees length, a matching silk blouse of whichever color fit her mood that day, and thin black wire framed glasses that accented the method of using lacquered chopsticks to tie up her hair in a loose ponytail.

"Souji will be finishing the semester here and transferring his credits to a school in the outskirts of a suburb called Inaba. If Seta feels comfortable in giving you the details, I'm sure he will discuss them with you at an appropriate time. With that being said, turn last nights assignment, and the lecture is dismissed".

All the students could sense each others despair, seeing as they just found out the classrooms highest ranking and sweetest student was not finishing the entire course with them. For the ones that had it, they reluctantly turned in their paper on business accounting to Professor Hanako who was standing by the only exit door.

**

9:32 PM

**

As he turned the door knob and inserted himself into his own bedroom, he had mixed feelings about all the sympathy cards, flowers, and other "get-well" gestures he had received in the mail throughout the past two weeks. Half of him felt like it helped through the grieving process, the other half of him felt like he was simply being pitied, and he hated that feeling.

Souji took off his black denim jacket and hung it on the right angle of his bedroom door and plunged himself rear end first into the love seat facing the TV on the opposite wall. Adjacent to the loveseat was his side stand where he kept his lamp, usually in the off position, and his cordless phone which was on the charger hub.

Facing the blank TV almost in a trance-like state he could see a blinking red light in his peripheral vision. He focused his eyes to the source and was not surprised at all to find that it came from his phone hub. He had 2 missed calls, and 2 voice mails.

With a sigh, he stood up and unbuttoned his jeans, letting them fall off his slender frame to the floor and slipped into a pair of black soccer shorts he pulled from his duffle bag on the floor before picking up the phone and dialing pound – zero.

_You have, t.w.o, missed calls and, t.w.o, voice messages. Please press…._

Souji quickly typed 'one', then 'one' again to begin listening to the recorded messages.

"_First message…"_

"Souji, it's Dojima. I'm sorry to be leaving you so many messages but I just want to make sure everything's all set. I'm having a taxi pick you up and bringing you to the train station for 9am tomorrow morning. Your tickets already paid for and I transferred funds to cover your cab fare also. I'll be waiting for you. Oh, and no one knows about you coming back to Inaba. I wasn't sure if you would be ready to see everyone at once. We'll talk more when you get here. G'night".

"_End of message"_

Souji let go of a small smile of comfort knowing that when Dojima said he was family, he wasn't kidding around. Other than his now deceased parents, Souji didn't know any other blood relatives that would do so much for him on such short notice.

He wanted the second message to be from someone specific, but when Dojima said no one else knew that he was coming, he knew he wasn't getting the phone call he wanted.

He turned around to see everything packed except for the "get-well" objects, the items he was leaving behind for now, and the jeans on the floor.

"_Next message…"_

"……….. Sou …….. ji....."

"_End of new messages. To listen to your messages, press one. To end, press …. "_

Souji pressed star on the phone to log out of his voicemail box and put the phone down on the hub and curled up on the loveseat.

"_Souji…."_

He thought to himself, over and over. Granted it was a scrambled message and you could barely hear 'Sou' and 'Ji'… the voice was so unfamiliar.

Souji passed it on for either a poor telemarketing call, a fellow student trying to say their goodbyes, or someone from the funeral parlor wondering when the check was coming in from his Uncle Dojima.

He had only hoped the phone wouldn't ring anymore in regards to his parents. He was upset enough as it is that they had passed away due to murder let alone aggravated that the local police looked at him as a suspect.

**

Two weeks earlier

Okinawa Prefecture Police Department, Office 4

**

"So you got home and just _saw_ them dead on the floor like that?"

"Yes, that's what I've been saying this whole time!" Souji exclaimed, hooked up to a polygraph machine as he was trying to pass the lie detector test.

"There was no sign of forced entry, we haven't found anyone who could be linked to the murder and a pistol was found in your bedroom by our officers!" said the officer with a cold glare.

Souji knew the empty pistol engraved with Naoto's name as a gift wouldn't help his case.. but he was about to lose all composure he mustered before agreeing to the test. He knew if he lost his temper he'd be further under scrutiny.

"Listen.. if you stopped wasting your time asking me questions, and did your job walking the streets and making phone calls – and paying attention to your _officers_, you'd realize that no ammunition was found in the house, and according to the ballistics report the caliber bullet extracted from my parents bodies didn't match the caliber gun that was recovered from MY bedroom! I didn't kill my parents!" Souji exclaimed, tears forming at his eyes

He used all the knowledge and advice he got from his uncle. He refused to be walked all over as if he were just another suspect. If anything, he may have been a victim.

A voice from the intercom came over most likely from behind the hidden glass.

"That's enough Hiro.. I'm very sorry Seta-san for your loss, we've no further questions. We'll keep you informed if we find anything else."

The officer whos name was apparently Hiro, muttered something under his breath about Souji being lucky, and was given the bird on Souji's way out.

**

Present, 9:45 PM

**

Dojima… Souji had so much to thank him for. Dojima did everything he could over the phone mostly at the Police Department on his own time. Everything from making the funeral arrangements for friends and family in Okinawa, to paying for the services with his sister and brother-in-laws accounts, to closing out all their bills and other affairs. Souji even found out about the fact Dojima noticed there was an ample amount of funds left over after the affairs were handled, and put the difference in a trust account in a bank in Inaba in Souji's name should the need for money arise for school or something else important come up.

Dojima and Nanako were his only family at this point, and he could not wait to see them at all.

Souji lost interest in fighting to stay awake. His heart and body felt so heavy at this moment in time, all he wanted was to be in the company of his friends and family back in Inaba as he never left.

With his eyes closed, he continued to think more and more as he drifted more and more into sleep.

He hurt a lot of people on that day…. March 21st…. 3 years ago.

**

March 21st, 2012

Monday Afternoon

1:37 PM

**

Souji didn't know what to do, feel, say, express. All he saw from the window was his friends, no.. his family get smaller and smaller. All he heard was..

"It won't be the same without you senpai…"

"We'll always be friends, no matter the distance!"

"Take care of yourself big-bro!"

"I'll always love you!"

He had to look away, the emotions were building up so fast Souji was afraid he'd lose all composure. He felt something wet hit his knuckles.

He had lost it. He wanted to turn around this train around in the worst of ways.

**

November 21st, 2015

Tuesday Morning

9:16 AM

**

"So where to?"

"….."

"Hey, kid… which train station was it that you were going?"

"Oh, I'm sorry. I'm not sure of the name, we didn't go over the details. It's the station that handles Okinawa to Yasoinaba".

"Oh okay, we can get there in time. Just sit back and relax".

Souji was aware that the reason the driver was being so kind and 'understanding' was most likely because Dojima had some input with his superiors when ordering the cab ride.

The ride itself was smooth, comfortable, and fed his liking for staring out the window when travelling. As he got closer and closer to the train station, he saw the skyscrapers and high risers become smaller, and smaller behind him.

**

9:41 AM

**

"Here we are, I'll help you with your bags. The fares paid for kid!" The cabbie was most generous Souji thought. Even if he was probably being paid for it..

Souji grabbed his laptop bag and hung it from his shoulder, and took the large duffle bag from the hands of the cab driver.

"Thanks for everything… uh…"

"Don't mention it. Have a great time in Inaba!"

Souji stood by the ticket counter fishing for the magic piece of paper as the cabbie spun tires and peeled away from the train station parking lot. He felt paper…

He could barely reach down that far in the bags pocket, so he pinched the corner of the ticket and yanked it out and provided it to the ticket master, who used a hole punch to assault the ticket and let Souji through the gate, and onto the train.

Souji handed his duffle reluctantly to the attendant who placed it into the overhead compartment.

He found his place by the window and rested the laptop bag in his lap, and sighed.

Seta was able to smile though, regardless of everything that has transpired in the past four weeks, because he was finally going back to where he belonged.

Souji rested his head back, closed his eyes, and opened his mouth just slightly…

"…home…"

**©2008 ATLUS  
SHIN MEGAMI TENSEI, SMT, and Persona are registered trademarks of Atlus U.S.A., Inc.  
****The plot of Persona: Lux Aeterna belongs to Havoc Wing only to be provided on .net **


	2. Lux Aeterna: The Emperor

Chapter II

THE EMPEROR

**

November 22nd, 2015

Tuesday Afternoon

12:11 PM

**

"Here you go sir, your bag".

A blonde attendant waited for Souji to stand up and adjust his laptop bag over his shoulder before handing him his duffle bag which to Seta looked like she was having a hard time even with two hands.

Souji took his duffle bag off the attendant's hands and she sighed with an "umpf" in there somewhere as it looked like her arms were going to pop off.

He lifted his bags and turned to the exit door, walked a few steps until he faced the door. It happened to open automatically as he closed his eyes. He took two steps forward, opening his eyes and a cool breeze graced the side of his face. It was the gentle, calm familiar wind of Inaba that he came to love so much, three years ago. He stepped off the train and onto the platform, looking around before hearing a very familiar voice.

"Oooi, Seta! Over here!"

Souji looked around for a second but it wasn't long at all before he found the same Dojima he left behind. Ryotaro Dojima was Seta's detective Uncle, still had short messy brown hair, a very short scruffy beard, his favorite jacket over his shoulder and other hand in the air waving to Souji.

Souji smiled and walked over to Dojima. Same gray shirt, same red tie.

"Dojima-san, you've no idea how much I appreciate what you've done for Mom and I…"

"Wow, you've sure changed a bit since I've last seen you. You were never this sentimental.." Dojima said, but realizing that the changes in Seta Souji were most likely the direct results of the recent events involving his sister and brother-in-law.

Souji looked at Dojima with narrowed eyes. He noticed a slight change in his demeanor also, but didn't expect Dojima to comment on it. His eyes started to feel so much heavier than before, perhaps since he was trying to fight back tears.

"Souji, I understand. The day before you left Inaba three years ago, Nanako and I both told you. You're not just a distant relative. You're part of our family now. You're like my younger brother instead of my nephew. You are always welcome in Inaba. Always".

"Thanks…."

The car ride to Dojima's house was fairly occupied with conversation. They caught up with each other about work, school, involvement with females, rather the lack there of on both ends.

"I haven't picked up a job since I started attending I.T. Japan, the work load is …. a lot to say the least".

"Oh, well if you think about it, it's not so bad. The sooner you finish school the sooner you can try to find a place to stay permanently, preferably in Inaba!" said Dojima with a smile at the end.

"I've been extremely busy between the small stuff in Inaba, and keeping in contact with Okinawa Police, about your parents….. Ah … misdemeanors mainly, and training your friend Satonaka on the force. She's really something!"

It had seemed Dojima hit another soft spot on Souji's heart. His parents. He was slightly relieved that Dojima was making sure something was happening on the police's end in Okinawa. He wasn't ready to talk about it, but was wondering what else had happened since he was interviewed as a murder suspect. He was ready to move on. So he thought at least.

"Satonaka? You mean Chie-chan's on the force? Good for her…."

"Yeah, she's still the department's rookie, but she's one hell of an officer".

"I bet, you don't want to know how many critical hits to the groin Yosuke took by her our sophomore year" Seta said with a reminiscing smile that took quite a bit of strength.

"Oh the Junes boy? Speaking of Hanamura, the two of them have been dating for about ... oh just shy of a year now. That's what Nanako says anyway" Dojima added, both hands on the steering wheel, focusing his eyes on the road ahead.

"We all saw that coming. I thought they would've started when we were still investigating the serial murders with the way they constantly argued. Just like an old married couple!" Souji laughed. He was slowly forgetting the troubles of the past month. The more and more he heard about how his friends were doing, the less pain he felt in his chest.

"So… how about the others? Do you still keep in touch with the old gang?" Seta asked.

"Well, most of them. Shirogane has been helping us at the station on her time off and she's attending law school in Tokyo. Ahh, Kanji-kun finally started a line of dolls, and a clothing line by one of the closed stores across from his mothers textile shop and he's doing phenomenal".

"That really good to hear, so everyone has just about been occupied and back to normal?"

Souji had an almost sad demeanor to his question, almost as if he didn't want everything to be "normal" without him. But he knew they were waiting for him the whole time…. So in the end, it was just fine that way.

"All in all… yeah. There haven't been any murders, Adachi's been sentenced life in prison for double murder, Nanako turned 10 recently and is the top of her grade. She recovered just fine from the _incident_ a few months after you'd left. You'd think she'd adjusted to the changes by now but she _still_ misses you. Nanako constantly asks about you nearly every day".

"That's really good. I knew she'd take after her big bro!" Souji laughed with Dojima about Nanako's affection for her 'Big Bro'.

"Ah, here we are…" Dojima said, reversing the car into the side driveway.

"Home…" Souji muttered under his breath. He took a deep breath, and exhaled most of the stress that had been tormenting him lately.

"Hm? What was that?" Dojima asked while opening the trunk to get Souji's duffle.

"Oh…. I just said I'm finally 'home'".

"Home sweet home huh? Oh, Nanako's still at school, so she'll be thrilled to see you. How about you drop your stuff in your room upstairs, take a few minutes and come downstairs when you're ready. I'll take ya to lunch, it's on me". Dojima insisted, leaving the duffle with Souji before locking the car doors and walking inside.

"That'd be great.."

**

12:59 PM

**

"It's…."

Souji was at a loss for words.

Everything was exactly as he left it. Of course it had been dusted, and kept clean, but the futon and table were in the same place. His books and study material were still on his desk, nice and neat. The love seat, the TV and the long table against the wall. Even the stand by the door where he kept his books and other miscellaneous goods.

He put the laptop bag down on the table, and his duffle over his futon. He was too tired and slightly anxious to unpack just yet. He wandered the room from place to place, running his hands over everything. He felt like he had never left Inaba, but he knew that was far from the truth.

"Enough…" he muttered to himself. He was tired of feeling depressed. There was no point in remaining sad about something that couldn't be reversed.

He left the room, closing the door gently behind him.

"Dojima-san, whenever you're ready!"

**

1:18 PM

**

Dojima chose the restaurant he was treating his nephew to, but Souji couldn't help but feel as if something were out of place. As they approached the front door to the diner, Souji stopped in his steps. "So…. Dojima-san, I don't remember this restaurant being here. Wasn't this a tofu shop?"

Souji had scratched the back of his head in confusion. _They took down Rise-chan's grandmother's Tofu Shop? That's ridiculous… _He thought to himself.

"It was, until the Kujikawa family decided to turn it into a small comfortable diner. Of course, tofu's still on the menu though!" Dojima added with a slight laugh.

"Oooh, that's good. I thought they sold it or got bought out…" Souji mentioned with relief.

They were both greeted by a bubbly waitress once inside, who was quick to sit them down with a pair of menus.

"Can I get you guys something to drink while you check out our menus?"

"Coffee, black, one sugar" Dojima requested.

"I'll just have an iced water" Souji asked.

"Souji.. when you're ready to enroll in school, let me know – I found a great business school for you which is about 20 minutes out of town southbound on route 8, they'll accept your credits and you can finish your bachelor's degree while living permanently right here in Inaba!" Dojima said trying to start conversation.

"That's great… when's the deadline for the application?" Souji asked, quietly.

The waitress took their orders and drifted off rather quickly into the background like she had just seen a celebrity. Souji and Dojima both watched her leave.

"That was weird…. Anyway, classes for this year start in January and registration must be done by December 15th" Dojima explained to his nephew about school registration.

"That'll be plenty of time. In fact I wish I could start sooner."

After waiting a good five or so minutes, their beverages were served respectfully to each end of the table; coffee to Dojima, water to Souji.

The waitress was just so bubbly she looked like she was going to burst from holding something in for ages…

"Oh my god, are you Seta Souji-kun from Yasoinaba High… um, three years ago!?"

Souji and Dojima both answered at the same time.

Dojima said 'Yeah' and Souji shook his head with a flat 'no' at the same time. Seta glared at his uncle who had an apologetic look on his face for not only speaking for Seta, but for answering 'yes' to the question.

The waitress looked at them funny and apologized for the confusion and walked away, almost disappointed.

"Dojima-san, I don't think I'm ready for people to know I'm here just yet… I don't feel like I can keep composed in front of everyone… ya know?"

"Oh… I'm sorry, I shouldn't have answered for you anyway".

"Don't worry about it…" Souji said in the comfort of Dojima's company.

Well before their meals were served, Souji noticed the level of water in his glass begin to produce ripples, then felt the ground shake and even Dojima noted the table shaking. Then 'thud thud thud'.

"What the hell?" Dojima said with a quizzical look on his face.

"SENPAI!!!!!!"

Souji immediately recognized that voice and his head almost fell back and off his shoulders. He did not want attention… but at the same time, he was anxious to see everyone. Anxious to see everyone but did not want everyone to see him in such a vulnerable, weakened state. He would not be exemplifying the qualities he did three years ago as their leader.

An overly excited Kujikawa Rise came stampeding from the kitchen to Souji's table. She greeted him with a real tight hug. A _real_ tight hug. Souji coughed quietly, winced as he felt all the blood from his torso up spike to his head and he felt a slight headache coming on.

Rise backed up a bit and waved 'hi' to Dojima.

"Hi Dojima-san! He~y senpai! Didja miss me!?!?! Huh? When did you get into town!?!!?" Rise asked, unable to conceal her excitement through her upward inflections.

"Hey Rise-chan, we just got in this afternoon and I don't want to sound mean, but you could keep hush hush for a bit?" Dojima asked.

"Oh… um, sure. Is everything okay?"

Souji adjusted himself in his chair.

"Everything's fine.. I uh, I just don't feel very well. I just don't want the gang to see me like this.."

"Like what? You look fine senpai. Is there something you're not telling me?" Kujikawa asked, pulling over a chair from another table.

She sat down with Dojima and her senpai, with a real concerned look on her face.

"Rise…" Souji began.

"My parents…. they….."

**

2:47 PM

**

The car ride back to Dojima's house was silent unlike the ride from the train station. Meeting with Kujikawa was great and all Souji thought, but to have brought his parents into the conversation and using it as an explanation as to why he was here. He didn't want to admit that, but he had so much experience in dealing with his true self and watching others face their true selves also he simply acknowledged the truth, albeit he did not like it at all. "_I'm here on the account of my parents being dead…." _

"Souji, I'm going to surprise Nanako and pick her up from school. So I'm going to leave you home for a bit and I'll be back shortly with your lil' sis. Okay?" Dojima said with a smile emphasizing lil' sis, trying to break through Souji's depression. "Don't let that conversation with Kujikawa upset you. They're bound to find out, ya know? And they'll be able to help you cope. It'll only benefit you!"

He appreciated it so much, but he couldn't get his mind off of his loss, or how it happened. Seta still had so many questions left unanswered. He wondered if they'd ever be answered.

"That's okay, I'll be fine. I'll have a chance to unpack and get settled in while you get Nanako".

Dojima pulled up to the front door instead of parking, seeing as he wasn't staying long".

"There you go, go take a bath, get situated, I'll be back in awhile with Nanako".

Souji closed the car door and watched the exhaust from Dojima's car rise as he drove off. He turned to the house, walked in, and shut the door behind him.

_Unpack, or bath first… _he thought.

_Screw it, a soak sounds perfect._

Seta left his room alone sans grabbing a change of clothes from his duffle bag first and heading to the bathroom and running the hot water. He unbuttoned his long white button-down and hung it on the door knob behind him. With his jeans unbuttoned, he dropped those to the floor along with his undergarments. He placed his cell phone on the floor behind the tub and slowly stepped into the tub, sitting all the way down and setting his head back while embracing, loving every hot, soaked moment. He rose his hands with a puddle of water to the top of his head allowing his silky gray hair to moisten and clump to his head. He sighed and closed his eyes.

_Mom….. Dad…..Why?_

"I welcome your return to the Velvet Room, friend".

_What the…_

"It is… extremely rare for an individual to return here after their contract is fulfilled. I suppose it should not be a surprise since you yourself are not so common".

The voice was all too familiar. Souji opened his eyes and immediately recognized the blue velvet layout of what looked like the back of an expensive limo. He blinked to focus his eyes and restore his blurry vision. The first thing he saw was the awkwardly long nose of an old acquaintance, the blonde hair and stern but beautiful face of a good friend.

"Igor… Margaret…"

"Ahh, I'm glad you remember us" said the little old man, folding his hands together under his chin.

"Why am I here?" Souji asked, absolutely confused.

The one who was referred to as Igor leaned back in his seat, averting his eyes away from a naked Souji who was positioned well enough to at least cover his essentials. Souji had been accustomed to getting caught in the Velvet Room at some rather inconvenient times where clothes weren't available.

"I see you have been offered another contract" said Margaret, who kept her eyes fixed at Souji's feet. "It seems the last tarot reading we performed for you three years ago suggested we would meet with an old friend around this time. And this _old friend_ is to face trials and tribulations in the coming years".

"Trials and tribulations huh?", Souji asked, wondering if that had any correlation to what had been going on recently. _If the murders are part of the tribulations, is there more? _he thought.

Igor sat forward on the edge of his seat and removed his hands from his chin and placed them on his thighs. "I believe we can assume that you would accept your new contract. We will allow you to maintain your rather impressive powers with regards to Persona. The purpose is to deal with remnant shadows that have been found in the alternate world and your personal life at the same time. Will you do this for your fellow man?" Igor asked, cutting straight to the chase.

Igor had tendencies to beat around the bush and cover everything in mystery, but felt as if he had a strong connection to Seta Souji; as if there was something to be done, he could rely on Seta to get the job done.

"Yes…. I can do that". Souji agreed to the proposition. He would retain his abilities as a Persona-user, a person who could summon physical manifestations of ones alter ego; shadows that have been tamed. What made Souji special, and Igor to rely on him as such, was the fact that Souji had the uncommon ability to summon and fuse multiple persona as opposed to being restricted to an individual.

After defeating Izanami-no-okami three years ago, he figured shadows wouldn't exist. The more he thought about the proposition the more it made sense. If evil, curiosity, and ill-will existed in the hearts of man, shadows would always exist to some degree. If shadows existed in the alternate world, the opportunity for the real world to be affected negatively would always exist as well. If by wielding persona and eliminating dangerous shadows could help mankind in any way shape or form, Souji would always be there.

"Then it is settled…" Igor said with a slight smile that lifted his large nose. "Margaret will continue to assist me in managing your compendium , if that is not a problem with you".

Souji agreed to the terms easily as he, Igor, and Margaret all got along regardless of the relative short time spent together.

"We will allow you the use of portals to the Velvet Room as we did before. If we need you, we'll contact you like this in the future. Oh, and I'm absolutely confident you will not let us down." added the stern blonde. Margaret maintained her posture as she looked Souji directly in his gray eyes.

Seta's vision of Igor and Margaret started to become blurry and faded away into a black nothingness.

What felt like only minutes had gone by, he heard the front door open in the living room and Nanako's voice saying something to Dojima about her test score, and something to the effect that she's just as good at test-taking as her 'big bro'. Seta smiled. He missed the rug-rat. He reached over the edge of the tub and grabbed his cell. Upon clicking 'O.K.' he looked at the front of his phone, it read '3:34p'

_They must've stopped somewhere on the way home…. And I must've fallen asleep if I was in the Velvet Room… _he thought to himself. _Oh well, it looks like living here will prove fulfilling in more ways than one at least._

Souji made a point to clean up while he had the chance and before the water became too cold. When finished, he dried off and got into a clean pair of jeans and a white button down shirt which he left unbuttoned, showing his slender body as he drained the tub. He put his phone in his front pants pocket and bundled his dirty clothes into the laundry bin, just like he used to when he lived here three years ago.

_Everything really does feel as if I never left…_

After finishing to clean up the bathroom and draining the tub, he exited into the kitchen to grab a glass of water and saw Nanako sitting at her usual spot with paper in front of her, more than likely homework. Nanako heard a door close in the vicinity of the bathroom and continued pacing herself at an assignment from school.

"Dad I hope you didn't leave the toilet seat up like you did last night! I almost fell in this morning!" Nanako exclaimed.

"What are you talking about? I'm right here!" Dojima said, a grin on his face from the kitchen table with the daily newspaper in his hands.

Nanako looked up in confusion and her little mouth about hit the very table she was working on. She stood up so fast she nearly knocked the table over with the power of her knees and darted straight towards Souji. She tackled and hugged him so hard he nearly dropped his glass.

"Big bro!" Nanako cried. She wasn't as much of a rug-rat as he last remembered. She had gained some height and left her hair down. She was still the cute, precious Nanako-chan. She dug her face into his lower chest and attacked him with a death grip. Souji placed the glass of water on the table before squatting down enough to see her at eye level and hugged her.

"You're back! Just like you said!!!" Nanako said, wiping her eyes! She backed away to look at her big bro. Seeing him there was like opening her most requested gift on Christmas morning. Her excitement was simply obvious.

"Oh… how long are you staying this time?" Nanako asked, wanting to know before she got her hopes up. Her 'big bro' smiled when he said…

"I'll be in Inaba permanently now".

"Yaaayyyy!! Did you hear that dad?" she questioned with such glee.

"Big bro we're gonna make a big supper for you tonight!! Are you hungry yet?"

"Not right now Nanako, Souji and I just had lunch shortly before I picked you up from school. How about later?" was added to the conversation by Dojima, which put a slight damper on Nanako's mood but she understood that they just ate.

"That'll be great…" Souji said with a faint smile.

"I'm a little tired, I'm going to go lay down… okay?" he added looking at both Dojima and Nanako, almost for approval.

"Okay!" they said in unison. "I'll call you down when suppers ready. We may have to run to Junes for groceries so don't be alarmed if you hear us leave for a bit" Dojima mentioned, trying to make things as comfortable as possible for his nephew.

"Sure thing…I'll be upstairs".

**

7:25 PM

**

Souji's eyes had opened as he stretched and yawned in his futon, rolling around to find another comfortable spot. He saw the time on his alarm clock and wondered if Nanako and Dojima had been to the grocery store yet or if they had even started dinner. He felt a pang at his stomach that brought nausea to his head which was probably from hunger.

_I should've had more than just water and a chow mein sandwich… _he thought to himself. Luckily the headache he felt from earlier was gone.

_Pi_

_Pi_

_Pi_

_Pi_

_Pi_

He sat up in bed at the sound of his cell going off. He checked the front display label and it read 'Yosuke'.

"Yosuke's calling? Why would…. ugh, Rise…. she told him.." he spoke out loud as if someone were listening to him. Though he tried to keep his arrival hush hush, it didn't seem like it was going to stay that way for very long. He pressed 'Call' and then placed the phone to his ear.

"Hello?"

"Souji-kun?"

"Hai… Yosuke? How've you been?"

"How've you been? That's all you can say!? Partner I heard you're back in Inaba! And you _weren't_ going to tell us!!?!!?" Yosuke said raising his voice.

"Well… I was, but I needed a day or two to readjust to everything. My p…rofessor suggested I rest up the day I get in so I don't feel overwhelmed. That's all…." He had lied, a little. Just enough to get him away from that painful subject. It didn't seem like Rise had mentioned what they discussed at the diner earlier that afternoon. At least he hoped she didn't…

"Ooooh, well… we'll still meeting up tomorrow you hear me!? It's been WAY to long! We've got a LOT to talk about and I'm sure everyone wants to see you just as bad as I do!" Yosuke exclaimed.

"Well, don't make a huge deal out if it. Maybe we can grab a coffee and a bagel tomorrow morning or something like that?" Seta suggested to his friend.

"That sounds great, Chie and I have tomorrow off … so … we'll meet up with you somewhere for breakfast!" Yosuke said with much enthusiasm. _Yosuke hasn't changed at all…_ Souji thought happily.

The pain of recent events seemed to slowly dissipate and felt more comfortable talking about anything in general now that he had something else to focus on rather than death and loss.

"So… Yosuke-kun, I hear you and Chie-chan have been…. seeing eachother?" Seta said with a smile on his end of the phone. He chuckled at the end of his statement.

"Ah, er… h-how'd you hear about that? I mean it's not like … oh what am I saying. Yeah we've been together for awhile now. You must've heard from Ri… I mean Dojima-san!"

Souji caught the first sound Yosuke made and it wasn't going to be Dojima he said at first. Ri…. He had to have begun to say Rise! _So they did talk today! _

"Yes… I did hear from Dojiima-san about you and Chie-chan but I also told Rise _n.o.t._ to call everyone and announce the fact that I was in town just yet!" Souji said with a scolding tone not particularly aimed at his friend on the phone.

"I didn't talk to …. argh. Okay okay Rise _did_ call me this afternoon but she was just so excited to see you back in town when she saw you earlier and, well… frankly… it hasn't been the same without you partner!" Yosuke confessed. He didn't want to lie or hide anything from Seta, and felt it best to just be frank.

"I'm….. also really sorry to hear about your parents. I wouldn't have ever imagined something like that would've happened… ever…" he continued.

Souji's hand clenched the phone slightly but realized his friends just meant the best of intentions.

"I … appreciate that Yosuke-kun. Hm… I thought it would have been best not to make plans just yet nor let anyone know I was here. I know that was stupid on many levels. One Inaba is small enough word would've spread like wildfire and two, I'll just beat myself to death thinking about everything. You think we could get together … often?" Souji asked as he admitted some of his swollen feelings.

Yosuke on the other line however felt bad that he couldn't meet with Souji as much as he'd probably like…. "Well, I only have tomorrow off this week; but we'll definitely make time for you after work – as much as you need!"

Souji took comfort in that his friends were there for him. Adjusting to life back in Inaba after a few years in the city would take a little time but he felt maybe it wouldn't be as hurtful and depressing as he first thought.

"I have a … somewhat personal question if you don't mind Yosuke.." Souji asked, taking a deep breath, and feeling slightly embarrassed. Yosuke however was ready for anything, after finding out what happened to his best friend's parents.

"Ah..forget I said anything. It was silly" Souji said, backing away from the thoughts that were bothering him. Yosuke however wasn't letting it go easily.

"Buddy you gotta talk to us about it. You'll never feel better if you keep everything to yourself. Belieeeeve me, I know… I didn't really feel free until after I reconciled my feelings about Saki-senpai, and moving on about it with you and the others, remember?"

Souji thought about the times he had with Yosuke by the riverbed, the countless discussions about Yosuke's feelings towards Konishi Saki, the daughter of a local liquor store owner and fellow student who was murdered in Toru Adachi's scheme. He remembered Yosuke's personality didn't begin to change until after he faced his fears and started talking to his friends about it. _Maybe I shouldn't be so hung up on what they think of me as their former leader…_

"I was …. Going to ask you, what do you think of me? Like….. a leader still?" Souji confessed, giving into Yosuke's 'plea'.

"Souji-kun you'll always be our leader; and we'll never think any less of you even if you're hurt. You may always be our leader but you're still human. You can use us as your crutch, partner. We certainly all took turns using you as a crutch!" Yosuke said laughing on his end.

"You're the best Yosuke-kun… hey listen, I'm due for dinner downstairs soon… so call or text me when you're ready for coffee in the morning".

Yosuke's voice became less empathetic and more excited about tomorrow already.

"Sure thing partner. Call me if you need anything!" Hanamura said putting emphasis on anything. "Oh um… theres probably something I should tell you too.." He added.

_Like what?_ Souji thought with furrowed eyebrows.

"I'm sure you figured I found out from Rise since she told me she was the only one you saw today.. and don't be surprised if you get phone calls from the others tonight!" Yosuke admitted to the things Souji eventually became self-aware of, and after talking things through a bit with Yosuke, Seta didn't mind if his phone rang again.

"I kinda figured that by now, it's okay – don't worry about it".

Souji's eyes were fixed on the door when he heard knocking, followed by Nanako's voice.

"Supper'll be ready in about ten or so minutes okay big bro?"

"Thanks Nanako-chan, I'll be right down!"

"Ah, that'd be Nanako-chan calling me for dinner – I gotta let you go Yosuke-kun. I'm looking forward to tomorrow".

"I'm really glad you're back Souji-kun. Things weren't the same with you gone. I just wanted you to know that." said Yosuke

"And I'm really grateful to be back home with you guys" confirmed Souji.

"I'll see ya tomorrow early!"

"Ja ne Yosuke-kun!"

"Ja!"

They ended their conversation on a pleasant note, and with perfect timing from Nanako

Souji heard light footsteps moving down the stairs which he assumed was Nanako returning to the kitchen. He stood up and stretched, raising his hands above his head and let out a deep yawn. He tidied up the futon and went downstairs for supper. After opening the door, he caught the delightful odor of marinated and possibly grilled beef wafting its way upstairs, and on that note he felt his stomach rumble and heard it grumble.

He focused his view on his feet as he stepped down the stairs, catching the sides of his white button down now slightly wrinkled and bouncing by his bare sides as he moved.

As he turned the corner at the base of the stairs he saw four plates placed at the kitchen table with four glasses filled with ice.

_Four?_ _There's only us here… who's the fourth plate!?_ Souji thought. He saw Nanako and Dojima by the sink and no one else was in the living room.

_The bathroom doors closed, lights and faucet on.. hmm…_

Souji walked into the kitchen behind his cousin and uncle and offered his assistance but was told to have a seat as they'd start eating shortly. As he grabbed the chair opposite of where Dojima usually sat he noticed there was a red coat hanging off the side of the couch in the living room. The sound of the faucet stopped and he fixed his eyes to the entrance to the hallway by the stairs leading upstairs.

Nanako and Dojima watched Souji intently, waiting for his reaction to their guest as they were fully aware of who was joining them for dinner.

After the company who had used the sink in the bathroom had exited and turned away from the steps leading upstairs, Souji immediately recognized that immaculate black hair accompanied by a red hair band that accentuated the fair skin it all surrounded. That and the red coat, he knew exactly who was joining him for dinner.

"…. Souji-kun!" said the guest. She knew her favorite gray haired investigation partner was in town. Although she wasn't anticipating the effect he had on her chest, how heavy it made her feel with longing, as if they hadn't seen each other in forever's time. The sound of her voice made it obvious that she felt as if everything was complete again. The happiness simply leaked from her facial expression.

_I…_ Souji started in his brain, speechless even in thought. His lil' sis and uncle relished the moment, knowing if anything could make Souji feel better, it was his first and only love.

**©2008 ATLUS  
SHIN MEGAMI TENSEI, SMT, and Persona are registered trademarks of Atlus U.S.A., Inc.  
****The plot of Persona: Lux Aeterna belongs to Havoc Wing only to be provided on .net **


	3. Lux Aeterna: The Fool

Chapter III

THE FOOL

**

November 22nd, 2015

Tuesday Night

8:25 PM

**

"Yukiko! I…" Seta blurted, stumbling both words and the torrent of thoughts and feelings rushing through his mind.

Yukiko, now the owner of the famous Amagi Inn of Inaba, slowly walked up to Souji and delicately wrapped her arms around Seta digging her face into his chest. "Souji…. you're back…" she whispered. Souji instinctively draped both arms around Amagi as his heart simply dropped from his chest in happiness. He couldn't focus his thoughts on anything but his first love, now right in front of him; in his arms. He felt the warmth from her slightly heated cheeks which he figured he was responsible for, standing there with an open shirt. He felt the moisture of her tears on his bare skin.

"You're here, you're really here.." she rambled. Dojima and Nanako looked at each other with smiles. Nanako began pouring tea into the glasses that she made sweet to go with the meal. Dojima began plating the evening's meals. "Alright kids, how about you sit down so we can get started!" said a smiling Dojima.

Souji grabbed the back of the chair adjacent to his seat and pulled it out, looking at Yukiko affectionately. Once in front of the chair, Yukiko fixed her skirt and sat straight down, allowing herself ample room for Souji to push her chair in. As soon as Seta sat down, Yukiko's hand found its way to Souji's and fit perfectly within.

"So Yuki-chan, how was work?" Nanako asked, sitting down across from their guest and near her father. Yukiko looked over the table to Nanako with a smile. "It was fairly busy as usual, you know this time of year is when we have to prepare for the holiday rush!" their guest explained. "Speaking of which, we have some vacancies for the hot springs tomorrow night, you guys are more than welcome to come by!"

Nanako's face lit up and Dojima was quick to respond. "We'd like that, but I dunno if I can make it this week though since I'm working, but if you're adamant about it I'm sure Nanako will still go!"

"Of course I wanna go! I love the hot springs!" exclaimed Nanako with her trademark emphasis on the word 'love', and Yukiko giggled. "Then it's settled, tomorrow night we'll go to the inn together for awhile!"

**

8:57 PM

**

"That was delicious, thanks so much for dinner!" said Yukiko, who had rinsed her plate in the sink.

"Don't lift a finger! I cooked so dad promised he'd do the dishes!", Nanako reminder her father with a smile from one side to the other. A sigh escaped from Dojima's lips as he got up and walked to the sink and began washing. With his hands in the sink, he looked over his shoulder to Nanako with a wink. "Why don't you finish up your homework for school tomorrow and give your brother and Yukiko some time to catch up?" suggested her father.

"Okay!"

"Oh, and Yukiko I hope you don't mind the place, we just got in this afternoon and we haven't really had a chance to clean the house" added Souji's uncle. Yukiko giggled and shook her head as if she didn't mind at all. Souji asked one more time if his help was needed in the kitchen, but was shooed away but both his cousin and uncle. Hand in hand, Souji took Yukiko upstairs to catch up in the privacy of the second floor.

Upstairs, Souji opened the door to his bedroom all the way and led Yukiko in first. She smiled at him as she walked in and sat on the loveseat side closer to the door. Yuki propped her right leg up on the loveseat with her knee against the back and let the rest of her leg fall off the side along with her left leg. Souji lightly swung the door closed on his way in, the door barely making contact with the frame. He sat on the loveseat in a similar fashion on the opposite side to face his company.

"Yukiko can I ask you something?" Souji said, with furrowed eyebrows. She looked back at him and tilted her head in a questioning manner. "Well of course Seta-kun, what's wrong?"

"Did….. Rise-chan tell you I was here?" he asked, with a slight smile as he leaned his side into the back of the loveseat. Yukiko giggled and shook her head left and right. "No.. but Rise-chan called Yosuke, who called Chie-chan, who called me!" she explained. "And I can't believe you weren't going to tell us!" said Yukiko. "Even though I …. can understand why you didn't call us right away…" she added.

"I heard about your parents… and I'm extremely sad, and sorry to hear it Souji. But hiding it and dealing with it by yourself isn't going to get you anywhere positive – and you know that better than any of us", Yukiko continued. Her empathy could be read easily in her facial expressions. She wished she could just wash all his problems away, her empathy and tiredness.

"With everything behind you… how do you feel Souji-kun?" asked Yukiko, not wanting to beat a dead horse with her curiosity. Souji was quiet for a moment in thought. '_How do I feel about it all….?' _"Well to be honest I was devastated when I found them….. like that. Now that the burial has already taken place, their affairs have been handled by Dojima-san, it feels as if I left them after a year of investigating another world like when I left you guys here in Inaba. It hurts, but somehow I think I'll be okay" explained Souji, trying to evaluate his own feelings in the process. This left the two of them with a silence that they never found awkward. He never found pain in the company of Yukiko. She always found freedom in the company of Seta Souji, whom happen to catch her yawning and laughed gently.

"You tired?" he asked. Yukiko nodded as she felt her eyes get heavier. She leaned forward and pivoted her knee to turn her back to Souji, scooting back into his chest. He stretched his left leg along the length of the back of the couch, and wrapped his arms around her and let his hands fall by her stomach. She instinctively let her hands meet with his, and allowed their fingers to entangle.

"Remember when we sat like this forever? On Christmas eve all that time ago…" asked Yukiko softly, with an obviously tired tone to her voice. Souji nodded reassuringly, closing his eyes and smiling as he caught the fragrances he missed the most while in Okinawa. Whatever hair products she had used to clean her hair left such a traumatizing aroma that always captivated him. They laid there for what seemed like forever, even though minutes went by. "We would talk about the case, and all our friends, and the….. other world….. and," Yukiko said as she went on and on about her past with Souji. "You know if you're tired I can walk you home, now that I'm in town permanently we've all the time in the world to spend together" he mentioned. She opened her eyes and turned her head to catch him in her peripheral vision. "You don't think Dojima-san would mind if I crashed here would you? It's kind of late, I don't want him to have to drive me out and it's kinda too late to be walking" she asked. He wondered if she was up to something, since the most daring acts he was aware of her committing were displays of public affection such as hugging or holding hands.

He responded carefully and playfully in attempts to catch her in a plot. "No no, Dojima-san wouldn't mind. You should probably call Amagi-san and let her know you're staying out". Yukiko looked at the door and nuzzled her head into his chest with a gentle giggle. "I might have sorta told her I was gonna be at Chie's again. I just may have forgotten to tell her you were back…" she admitted with a grin. He knew it, she told a white lie to spend more time with him. Not that fibbing bothered Souji when it came to situations like these, he found it that much more special that she would do that just to be with him. "

"I really missed you, you know…" she said, pushing her back gently into Souji's stomach. "Ah.. I missed you too, a lot.." Souji reassured.

"You know Yuki-chan, there's more room on the futon to lay down" he suggested as he drew in air for a yawn. He coughed slightly as Yukiko elbowed him in the stomach as a response to his suggestion, even though she had a smile on her face. "Trying to get me into bed again? Pervert…" Yukiko said with a slight giddiness to her tone. "You know exactly what I meant, you pervert.." retorted Souji, laughing softly. "I know, I was teasing. I really don't want to fall asleep just yet though" Yukiko confided as she yawned. She sat up and swung her legs over the edge of the loveseat until her feet graced the floor. Souji watched her move, relishing her every quality.

"I mean, I know you're here and all. But when you left all that time ago, I always felt like I would never see you again. I feel like this is too good to be true, like a dream…. and…. and….when I first said I loved you, I said that knowing you had to go back to Okinawa. I had to be true to myself, and that hurt – because I..," she explained until she was cut off. Until she was cut off by Souji's lips that homed in on hers gently. As the two pairs separated, Yukiko took a deep breath to try to relax her blazing face. He backed away from her slowly, devouring her with his gray eyes. "I know. It's no dream though. I promise I'll be here in the morning".

"Either you're very good at making me feel safe, or you're very good at talking girls into getting in bed with you!" Yukiko mentioned with a smile, knowing that it wasn't his true intentions entirely. "Right right, my entire time in Okinawa was spent wondering when I'd be able to sleep with the rather famous Amagi Inn owner again!" Seta teased as he leaned in to peck a gentle kiss on her cheek. "Souji!!" exclaimed a blushing Yukiko.

"I am pretty tired, so I won't hold it against you if you fall asleep. I think I'm ready to turn in for the night myself" said Souji who stood up and walked over to the duffle bag he had by the other side of his table. He unzipped the bag and fished around through its contents briefly before pulling out a white cotton tank top which Yukiko assumed was going to replace the open button-down shirt he had on presently. Yukiko stood up and reached over the table and grabbed the tank top from his hands, shaking her head saying "Noooo, just like Christmas eve…." Souji immediately knew what she was referring too. He dropped the tank top regardless of where it fell, it wasn't his concern, nor was his concern if the door was locked at this point in time. Yukiko made her way around the table and placed the flats of her hands on either side of Souji's pectorals. "Can we…." she said, with a fierce blush around her face and neck. Yukiko closed her eyes and pressed her cheek to his neck and pivoted to give her lips a chance to bask in his masculine flesh, for her nose to reminisce in his scent that she so longed for. Souji tilted his neck, revealing easier access to his neck. She used the hands on his chest to push him back towards the futon which caused Souji to step backwards slowly towards the wall that the futon lay lengthwise against. "I think you were right…." she said, as her quiet voice began to reflect her hearts heavier beating.

"Hm?"

"The futon does have more room to lay down on…"

**

November 23rd, 2015

Wednesday Morning

8:37 AM

**

"Daaaaaaaddy, do you know where my paper went? The one I finished last night?" Nanako said in the living room. She was ready for school but couldn't find the homework from the night before. This was a situation that nearly never happened, so naturally she was quite anxious. Dojima was up out of habit regardless of the fact he wasn't due in the office for another hour and a half. He looked around the kitchen, the living room. With an eight by eleven sheet of paper turned face down on the far end of the couch he wondered if that could have been it. He stepped over to the living room couch and picked up the paper flipping it over. Sure enough he found Nanako's paperwork and handed it to her promptly.

"Nanako you're usually so organized, what's with you this morning?" Dojima asked out of sheer curiosity. Nanako looked at him with a puzzled face and then understood what he meant. "Oooh, well I fell asleep downstairs after you went to bed last night and I guess when I woke up late last night, I left it here without bringing it with me to my room. Thank you daddy!" she said. "Oh, how's the coffee this morning?" asked Nanako as her father put down a half empty cup. He grinned and thanked her for a delicious pot of coffee and that he appreciated it.

"Hey Nanako, want a ride to school this morning? I can bring you to school and I can get to work early" he suggested. Nanako loved the idea of having a ride to school instead of having to walk the entire distance. It was settled. Dojima walked to his bedroom to grab his two last missing accessories before he was ready for the day; his jacket, and his car keys. "You don't mind being a few minutes early do you?" asked her father.

Strange enough, Nanako was a rare case in children, one that did not mind school at all. In fact she quite enjoyed it, and her father knew this – naturally he took advantage of it while it lasted. "Nope, not at all!" said Nanako, excited for another day at school, knowing that when she got back she had her big bro to come home to now!

**

9:32 AM

**

Souji heard the front door close and lock almost an hour ago, and usually that sound woke him right up for the rest of the day. He wasn't much for sleeping late, and he wasn't sure if it was from being overly tired, or overly happy, possibly a combination of both, there was no objection to staying in bed longer today. He had woken up laying on his right side knowing which side of the futon he was on since parts of his back were against the wall. He found comfort in feeling the entire length of Yukiko's back against his chest with no bra strap to interrupt them. Souji found his left hand draped over a sleeping Yukiko gracing her slender stomach with his fingertips, and his right arm underneath her head and when he lifted his own head gently, he smiled when he saw his fingers tangled with those of her own protruding from her out stretched arm.. He rested his head back down and listened to her sleep. He saw her light frame lift so slowly and fall back as she exhaled.

_I feel like this is too good to be true, like a dream…_ he remembered her saying. Deep down he felt the same sentiments, and waking up next to Yukiko provided him with some of the most cherished feelings he had ever known. Filled with cherished feelings or not, he also felt a slowly rising excuse to get up. The thoughts passed through his mind to see if there was a way he could get up to use the restroom without waking her. The dilemma didn't last long though when he realized his left leg was captured between both of Yukiko's and as he tried to retrieve it, even in sleep she wasn't letting him go. As he tried to gently jerk his knee from between her legs he felt nothing but silky flesh and it was enough to grind his sexual gears into motion again.

Yukiko unlatched her hand from his and lifted her other arm in stretching, accompanied by a feral yawn and the simultaneous stretching of her legs as well. Souji used the opportunity to get his knee back, and his eyes feasted on the view. He saw her beautiful face turn to him as she rolled onto her back and begin to open her eyes. "G'morning Souji.." she said with a smile. He leaned over and teased her lips with his. "G'morning beautiful…"

He knew exactly what it took to make her melt, and this time was no exception. She sat up, wrapping her arms around her possessions and smiled at him with a faint blush. "I told you I was going to be right here when you woke up" he said as a reassurance to her mild issues from last night. "That you did…" she agreed, tilting her head still smiling.

"Um…." Souji started with furrowed eyebrows. "What's wrong?" she asked.

"I hafta pee…." he said. Yukiko giggled. "Well go then, I'm not going anywhere!" she said with a laugh. Souji sat up, letting some of his body escape the confines of the futon. "Well… I don't have anything on…" he added. "Oh yeah that's right…. you just might want these too if you're getting up.." said Yukiko, as she reached over on the floor and recovered a pair of black boxer-shorts that she had removed from Souji's inventory of clothing. Souji knew exactly what happen the night prior and felt compelled to blush, which got a slight giggle and a kiss on his lips from Yukiko. "Since when you do you wear boxer-shorts anyway?" she asked smirking. He grabbed them so that they wouldn't hang from her index finger tip any longer and added "since my regular boxers always found places I didn't know I had".

He grabbed his boxer shorts and shuffled himself into them from under the futon. As he got up and stepped over Yukiko he looked over and down at her affectionately. "Hey do you have plans for today? Yosuke invited me for breakfast so I want you to come with me, okay?" She had to think about it for a moment, but plans she premade struck her quickly. "Aw, Souji I did … I have a hiring interview for a new chef at one o'clock, but I think I can make it for breakfast without any problems." she said. Souji was delighted about the news and slightly embarrassed at the same time as he had to make his way to the door past the mine fields of undergarments such as red panties and a matching red bra. He stepped out into the hallway and made it down two steps before realizing, he didn't have to open the door…. recalling how he left the door barely ajar.…. _Oh boy, either Nanako or Dojima-san saw the room this morning. At least I hope it was in the morning…_he thought to himself.

Moments went by and Yukiko decided it was a good opportunity to throw her clothes back on. She escaped the futon and made her way to her underwear and bra. As she put them on, she felt her body flush pink remembering the manner of which they were removed by Souji-kun. She found the rest of her clothes and tidied up the room starting with the futon. Souji tapped his knuckles on the door once he made his way back upstairs and got Yukiko's attention as she turned her head to the door, now fully dressed in last nights' clothes.

"That's not fair, you're all dressed already…" he said with a faux-depressed tone. Yukiko could see right through it with the smile on his face. "C'mon _stud_, put some clothes on… I'm hungry!" said Yukiko, laughing.

Souji found another pair of light blue jeans, and a black button-down which he put on, quickly managing the buttons. As he fixed his collar Yukiko couldn't help but examine his back pockets with her _hands. _"You know this is all your fault…" she said as she removed her hand away from his buttocks. He turned to face her with a grin. "What do you mean?" he asked her with as much innocence as he could muster. She frowned and crossed her arms when she replied "You are turning me into a dirty sex fiend" she admitted. "Yuki how could you be a fiend when it's only been twice?" he asked. "Souji you can count, it was _way, way _more than twice!" Yukiko answered, but then slowly realizing "Oh you mean in the course of our relationship…" which Souji couldn't help but to laugh at. Souji stood behind Yukiko and wrapped his arms around her waist, pressing his lips to the side of her neck. She tilted her head in response and closed her eyes.

"Yuki-chan?" he asked. She loved when he called her _Yuki _or _Yuki-chan _she felt as if she could actually _feel_ his affection dripping from the nickname. "Hm?"

"I know this might be a silly question, but …. are we…." He stumbled, not really knowing how to put it, which was uncommon for him. Yukiko knew where the question was going and she squeezed his hands gently as she finished his question with "boyfriend, girlfriend?" He agreed with an "Ah..", and she followed up with an "Of course, silly.. You've fallen in the trap of Princess Yukiko Amagi, and she's scored her hot stud! You're not going anywhere!" she teased, making light reference to three years ago when he had rescued her in the alternate world from her own shadow. Granted how serious that situation was, and how more deadly it could have been, Souji did find the joke quite comical.

"Should I call Chie and have them meet us at the Inn for breakfast? I'm sure breakfast doesn't have to be in private!" Yukiko asked. She unlatched herself from Souji's arms as she grabbed her phone off his study desk where she left it the night before. Souji grabbed his phone and placed it into the front pocket of his jeans as he awaited for his _girlfriend_ to make arrangements.

"Chie?" Yukiko spoke into the phone.

"_Hmmm?"_ Souji heard softly ejecting from the speaker of Yukiko's phone.

"Chie….. did I wake you!?" asked Yukiko, genuinely surprised.

"_Uh huh…." _responded what sounded like an animal yawning on the other end.

"Chie you're always up before I am. What's the matter?" Yukiko was trying to figure out if anything was possibly wrong on Chie's end, since her best friend was always the one getting her out of bed if not her mother.

"_Oh, nothing's wrong Yuki-chan, no worries!" _Chie said.

"_Is that Yukiko-chan on the phone? Tell her I said hi!" _said another voice behind Chie's. Yukiko looked at Souji in playful shock. She giggled into her tone. "Chie is that Yosuke-kun in the background, did you…… were you…." She started to ask.

"_Uh huh…." _said what sounded like Chie confessing to a crime. "Chie-chan!" Yukiko chided her friend playfully as she caught Souji laughed himself.

"Hey are you still up for breakfast with the boys?" Yuki asked.

"_Of course, we were waiting for you guys to call and meet up with us!" _said Chie.

"Waiting? But I thought you said I just woke you up? You weren't….. when I called? Ewwww Chie!!!" Yukiko exclaimed with a smile on her face. "_What? You can't 'eww' me when you slept over Mr.I-don't-call-my-friends house. And don't tell me you two didn't because I know you like a book Yukiko!" _Chie said laughing on her end of the line. Souji couldn't make out the entire conversation but he knew it must've been good to make Yukiko blush.

"W-well, now that that's out of our system…. we agreed that breakfast at the Inn would be fine. You two okay with it?"

"_Sure thing._ _Want us to meet you there now?" _asked Chie.

"Okay. We're heading there now. If you get there first, just say I'm on my way to join you" Amagi said, using her ownership of the Inn to her advantage.

"_See ya in a few!" _said Chie before ending their call. Yukiko held her phone until she retrieved her jacket that she left downstairs.

"Oh, do you think Dojima-san would want to join us?" she asked.

"Dojima-san's probably at the police department already. It's ten" Seta said. Yukiko looked at the front display screen of her phone to confirm the time, and admitted she hadn't noticed. "Well let's get going!" she said.

Souji made sure the room didn't show signs of being ravished from last nights' activities and exited the room before closing the door. He let Yukiko head down the stairs first and walk out the front door as he had to lock up before they left. He relished in the fact that it was a relatively warm day considering the month they were in. With the lack of wind present it could have passed for a summer evening at dusk, temperature wise. Souji slipped his left hand into her right and let their fingers tangle as they walked down the sidewalk towards the Amagi Inn, hand in hand.

**

10:32 AM

**

"Yukiko! I'm so glad you're back, the chef scheduled to come in for the interview asked to postpone until tomorrow!" said a tall fair skinned woman in a kimono designed specifically for the Amagi Inn. "Oh you could've called my cell, I wouldn't have gotten upset!" said Yukiko, smiling at her attendant, still holding Souji's hand. "Did he have any particular reason why he couldn't make it today?" she asked. "Well, he said his daughter fell ill suddenly yesterday and no one can figure out why, even the doctors. So he's been with his child at the hospital all night and this morning" the attendant said. Yukiko did genuinely feel sad for her potential employee and more so for his child even if they had never met. "That's so upsetting… well, if you have his contact number, can you call him or leave him a message and tell him tomorrow is perfectly fine with us at the same time" said Yukiko to her attendant; who nodded and walked behind the front desk and started digging through what looked like a small phone number repository.

Yukiko walked down the right hallway with Souji in hand behind her towards the Inn's dining area which was used for breakfast for the guests in the morning before 11:30. As they entered the wide open room used for many different events as well, they saw Satonaka Chie and Hanamura Yosuke sitting together at a table opposite to the entrance by the windows facing the hot springs which could be seen from a short distance. _They haven't changed at all…_ Souji thought to himself with a smile.

Satonaka was wearing a black skirt and nylons to match, a dark blue blouse and her green jacket hung on the chair behind her. Hanamura was clad in a white graphic t-shirt, and couldn't' really see anything else since he had the window seat. Yukiko and Souji both pulled chairs opposite of Chie and Yosuke respectively but before Souji was able to sit down, his other two friends had gotten up. He furrowed his eyebrows and couldn't help but to laugh when Chie was the first one to hug him tightly. As she let him go she threw a playful punch as his shoulder. "You jerk, you call us once a in a blue moon _if_ that when you're in Okinawa, and when you move back to Inaba you don't call at all!? You're so backwards!" Chie chided. She backed away and hugged Yukiko as she always did and smiled. Yosuke when given the room to do so, started to pass his hand out in front of him in a handshake gesture, but said "the hell with it…c'mere partner!" as he dragged Souji into a hug, who felt compelled to reciprocate.

Once the salutations were over, the four of them found themselves in their seats with menus and four glasses of iced water. "So was the rest of highschool in Okinawa any fun?" Chie asked, trying to spark conversation. Souji laughed in sarcasm as he responded to her with "'Abso-lutely. It was just so~o grand…." And the four of them laughed. "In all seriousness it was boring as hell. I missed you guys the entire time." The whole crew knew this, though it was nice to hear from Souji himself. "Well you haven't missed out on anything around here except for us. Nothing really has been happening in Inaba either".

Time and food passed by as they all caught up with each other after Souji's three year hiatus from Inaba. They shared laughter, surprises, gentle moments, even shocking moments. He had to admit that he always knew Satonaka and Hanamura would end up together based on their discreet displays of affection during the investigation but he never thought about what it would be like to see them together in a relationship where they were so comfortable and casual about it. It truly was a refreshing sight. They conversed about the others, Rise who was now working in her grandmother's diner where the Tofu Shop used to be situated. Kanji took a loan to open a clothing and doll store across from the textiles shop and he and his mother were doing very well. Naoto left after high school to pursue a law career and enrolled in a school in Tokyo. Teddie still helps Yosuke around at Junes from time to time when he's not spending time in the alternate world. They even got around to talking about some of their other high school friends and Souji was definitely pleased to hear that Nagase Daisuke started dating a new relatively tame Ebihara Ai shortly after the start of their last year in school. Ichiro Kou was still single but managing a men's youth basketball league and was attending school locally to play college basketball and was being scouted by a recruiter for professional basketball so he was doing very well.

"Well I really hate cutting things short with you guys, but Dojima-san only gave me the morning off so I could spend some time with you Souji-kun but I have to head back to the police department or else he'll chew my ass apart" Chie said, disappointed their breakfast date was coming to a closure. Yosuke turned to her and asked "You're working late tonight?" to which Chie nodded in disappointment. "Okay, well when you get home I'll have supper ready, but for now I have to get back down to Junes or else we won't have any managers available!" said Yosuke trying to cheer her up. Chie loved the idea that there just _might_ be steak waiting for her, but she didn't hold her breath knowing Yosuke was the one behind the stove tonight. "Wait, when you get home… you live together too now? You didn't mention that!" Souji said in surprise.

"Well right after school we decided it might be a good idea, so we pooled some of our money and put a security deposit on an apartment in the neighborhood around the shopping district, about five minutes from the riverbed, and the rest is history!" explained Yosuke. "That's great! Good for you guys…" Seta said. Chie pushed herself away from the table and grabbed her green jacket off the back. She leaned over and pecked Yosuke's cheek and stood up. "I'll let you know if I'm going to be late which then his uncle's fault" Chie said with a smile looking at Yosuke and pointing at Souji. "I'm so glad you're back home Souji-kun, I wish I could stay longer but I really have to go" she said. "Wait, you're not going all the way to the police department on two feet. I'll take you there on my way to work" Yosuke said. Souji and Yukiko looked at each other smiling. "Let's make plans for tomorrow! I'll call you tomorrow after work okay Yukiko? We'll see ya later leader!" Chie said, and her best friend nodded. "I'll call ya when I get out of work partner, maybe you can Yukiko can join us for dinner when Chie gets out of work!" Yosuke offered. He knew Chie loved the idea because she gained a sway in her hips, which she only did when she was in a good mood. Yosuke got up and walked across the open dining area with Chie before disappearing around the corner.

Yukiko and Souji looked in each other's eyes, which was short lived when Yukiko turned her face to the side with a slight blush. "So… since I have no interview, I suppose I'm free for the day since it is terribly slow…" she said smiling. "Any particular things you want to do on your second day in Inaba?" she asked. Souji thought about it and quickly decided it may be a good idea to visit Kanji since he has seen just about everyone he could have, and didn't want to leave out his good friend. "Let's go visit Kanji-kun, I'm sure he'll be excited to see his old senpai" Souji said laughing slightly.

"Is there anything you wanna do today?" Seta asked, not wanting to be in charge of the _entire_ day. Yukiko looked around to see if anyone was watching her as if she had done something bad, then looked back at Souji and firmly pressed her index finger to Souji's chest, then smirked before getting up and pulling Souji with her across the floor. He looked at her as if she was up to something but when one of the attendants said "don't worry about the inn Amagi-san, we'll see you tomorrow!" as they were by the front door, Souji realized they were just on their way to Kanji's for the time being. _Aww, damn…_ he thought, silently laughing to himself.

"Boy, for a minute there I thought I really did turn you into a _fiend_" said Seta placing emphasis on 'fiend'. Yukiko looked at him with her hand still in his and giggled. "You did, but we have other things to do first before I get around to what I wanna do!" she said blushing slightly. "Let's go visit Kanji-kun and see what he's up to, okay!?" asked Yuki.

"Sounds like a plan to me you dirty fiend" Souji said in playful manner, which only rewarded him a playful punch to the chest from his girlfriend. "I'll make you regret that!" she said smirking at him. To which he could only _delightfully_ agree.


	4. Lux Aeterna: The Temperance

chapter iii

THE TEMPERANCE

**

November 23rd, 2015

Wednesday Afternoon

12:16 PM

**

"Senpai!"

Yukiko and Souji decided to spend a short while with Kanji after all, and Kanji was all too pleased with it.

"Senpai, when did you get in!?" Kanji asked, as he walked around the counter of his crafts store. He had still been the same ol' Kanji, with less of an edge. He was proud of his blue jeans and black t-shirt look, bleached hair…. It felt 'right' to him. The first thing he did was hug Souji-kun, and when he pulled away you could see the excitement in his face. Souji looked at Yukiko, and the mutual expression explained enough to Yukiko that they would not discuss the circumstances as to why he was moving to Inaba permanently, just yet. Souji was extremely happy to see Kanji as well and was eager to take a seat with him and Yukiko in the back office which was wasn't much of an office as it was a work space and storage room for the materials and tools he needed.

"So Senpai … what brings you to our neck of the woods again? Parents overseas for work?" Kanji asked, completely oblivious to what had happened. Souji shook his head slowly in an up and down direction confirming Kanji's question, inaccurately. "Yeah, something to that effect. I figured instead of staying in Okinawa, I may as well plan to move into Inaba now rather than later". Listening to the boys chatting with a smile on her face, she used the circle work table to her advantage as she easily could get her hands into Souji's lap who was sitting next to her, and with materials and clothing on top of the table, it concealed what was going. Kanji, whom had been sitting across from the two, continued to explain how he opened the shop by borrowing some money from his mother's shop's account to open his own business with his friend. "That's really great. I'm proud of you Kanji…" Souji said with a soft smile on his face. "Were you able to pay back your loan yet?" he asked out of concern.

Kanji looked Souji directly in the eyes with a wide grin and extinguished Souji's concerns. "What with sales being so great in the first year I was able to pay off my loan in one year, and since then basically the rest has been profit. Naoto-kun and Yukiko-chan here helped me figure out how to make sure the bills get paid, since I suck with math but everything else has been running fine" Kanji explained.

Kanji, Souji, and Yukiko continued to talk and about things that occurred to them from Souji's departure to present, and it kept them occupied for quite awhile.

"I'd rather not, but I have to cut it short … I've got more custom orders I have to put together by tonight so I can have them mailed first thing in the morning. Can we hang out later this week?" he asked, standing up and running his hand through his bleached hair.

Yukiko loved the idea of getting the group together and suggested they figure out a day no one was working or a time everyone was available, and meet up at the Amagi Inn for supper and a soak at the hot springs. Kanji of course did not oppose a free meal and quality time with his friends, and Souji would never pass up time with Yukiko.

"So what I'll do is call everyone and find their schedules so I can pick a night… sounds good?" Yukiko asked, standing up from her chair with her hand in Souji's. The boys agreed to the plans as Kanji pulled some materials from a bin against the wall and said goodbye to his friends for now. Yukiko and Souji exited the store and found themselves on the sidewalk wondering what to do next.

"We should probably call Naoto-kun to see if she can make it into town this week.." Yukiko mentioned. With these plans they had been making, Souji agreed since they wanted to get everyone together. "And not only Naoto-kun, but we also need to find Teddie".

Yukiko frowned, with her phone in hand. "But Souji-kun, Teddie went back into the alternate world, and we can't enter the TV anymore" she explained with a depressed tone to her voice.

Souji turned to face her with a blank expression not sure if he should explain he might still have the ability to do so. He remembered his most recent visit to the Velvet Room, but still had not figured out why it happened. There had not been any instances of murder or the presence of shadows, or even fog. "Yuki-chan, I think I should probably show you something. Let's go to Junes" he said, taking her hand and walking down the sidewalk of the shopping district. "Souji? Why are we going to Junes!?" she asked. "I just think there's something you should see that's all". he replied.

**

3:09 PM

**

"Souji are you crazy? We've tried this already!" Yukiko exclaimed when Souji brought her to the electronics department at Junes. "I understand that Yuki-chan but there is probably something you might just want to see" he said. He looked around to make sure no others would see, and with his right shoulder facing a flat screen TV monitor large enough to fit a refrigerator, he placed his hand out in front of him. He slowly brought it closer to the display screen, until his finger tapped the LCD monitor with a 'thud'. Souji blinked in confusion, as he expected to be able to still enter the world with no problem.

"That's weird…" he said. Yukiko shook her head knowing to the best of her knowledge, everyone lost their persona abilities, and with them the ability to enter the other world.

"Souji, I know you miss Teddie, but unless he comes to our side, I doubt we'll see him…" she said sadly. Souji shook his head left and right and refused to accept that. "That can't be…" he whispered. He slowly shut his eyes until his vision faded to black. Yuki-chan watched him for seconds which felt like minutes to Souji. He heard a loud ping sound like a tuning fork being struck violently. As much as he wanted to open his eyes, he couldn't find the strength to do so. He heard the voice of Igor.

_I did not plan for you to reawaken so soon. But it seems your powers are needed again. Focus, and the path will be revealed along the darkened road. _

With his eyes closed, head down, he extended his arm to the TV again and felt like his first three fingers were under a wall of streaming water. Yukiko looked in shock as part of her boyfriends right hand was _in_ the TV. "Souji-kun!" she exclaimed. "What's going on!?" she asked, afraid of the white light emitting from the TV screen. Her voice began to get louder and louder as the two were completely enveloped in a white light.

When the light simmered down, it did not revert to normal. Souji removed his hand from the monitor and opened his eyes. Yukiko was now standing at his side with her arm around his waist. The store was now darkened as if they were stuck in the store after hours and the lights were off. They didn't hear voices or footsteps. It was as if the store was completely empty.

"Souji-kun, what was that!?!?" she asked, frightened. Wishing he could answer the question accurately, Souji could do nothing but admit he wasn't sure. "You kept your persona abilities? How?" she asked. He looked her in the eyes and shook his head. "I didn't always have them. I lost them right after I left Inaba, and I heard a voice right after got here… it said I was needed again" he told her. It by far wasn't the strangest thing she had heard or seen before so it was believable. "But just you?" she asked. "That's dangerous!" Yukiko yelled out of concern, and Souji completely agreed remembering what dungeon-crawling alone in the TV world meant.

"For now let's stick together" Souji suggested, and Yukiko was more than willing to oblige. They recognized the environment as the Junes department store, so they found it easy to get to the exit. The electronic doors weren't working as they were approached. "So…. The doors are locked, which means we're here after hours. So the TV altered time?" Yukiko asked to herself aloud. "That could be it but I'm not one-hundred percent sure. Let's keep looking around" her boyfriend suggested. "Yosuke showed me where the door mechanisms were. They should be upstairs in the manager's room" Souji explained. Yukiko thought it was a good idea for now, and followed Souji as he tried to find the stairs to the 2nd floor.

Souji saw a sign against one of the walls that directed customers and personnel to the restrooms in one direction. The whole sign read…

ß RESTROOMS

PERSONNEL ONLY à

"There it is, I knew it was around here somewhere…" Souji said as he turned a corner, holding Yukiko's hand behind him closely. As he pulled Yukiko into the hallway with him he turned to face her and saw something fly by them behind Yukiko. "What the hell…." he muttered. He let go of Yukiko's hand and put his hands on her shoulders. "Stay here for a second…"

Yukiko followed his instruction as he peek his head around the corner and looked in all available directions. Nothing stood out of the ordinary. "I suppose I was seeing things…" he said almost disappointed. He forgot about the situation and continued to the hallway with Yukiko in front of him as a precaution. As they came to the stairs at their left leading to the 2nd floor of the electronics department, they both heard the laughter of little girls. Yukiko's grip on Souji's hand grew tenfold as he positioned himself in front of her and pushed her onto the first step in the event anyone saw them. "What's going on Souji?" she asked, her hand shaking. Souji was about to say something to the effect of _wait here_ but they both watched in fear as they saw two young girls appear in front of them by walking through the walls of each side of the hallway. They faced each other about six feet away from the staircase and Souji and Yukiko. The girls had shoulder length blonde hair, and were garbed with blue sunflower dresses with matching hair bands and shoes. Simultaneously the girls turned their respective directions and faced Souji and Yukiko who had poked her head around the corner of the stairs and the hallway.

"Souji! Those are Alice dolls!" exclaimed Yukiko. "Yukiko, run upstairs and the second door on your right is the manager's room. Use the 2nd switch to the left. You'll know what I'm talking about when you get there. Open those doors!" he exclaimed. Yukiko nodded and ran as fast as she could to open the store's front doors via electronic locks in the manager's room.

Souji however had a slightly more difficult task. He had not reawaken to his persona entirely, and therefore could not fight the Alice dolls to the best of his ability. Souji closed his eyes to think for a moment and remembered the hunting department was adjacent to the electronics department, which would have left Yukiko vulnerable if he left this area. "But first…" he thought.

With clenched fists Souji moved his legs, picking up speed as he ran towards the Alice dolls. He jumped and from an angle, extended his right leg out connecting a kick to one of the Alice dolls. Souji's experiment worked. _They do feel physical pain. Yes! _he thought, excitedly. Souji reached for and grappled the other doll by the arms. He swung her light weight figure up so her legs were in the air. As he let go, he kicked his legs up and out in the air into the dolls chest mid-air, sending the doll cascading down the hall. From the angle his body was as he disposed of that doll in the air, he let his body tilt so as gravity took effect; his legs hit the floor and crouched down onto his knees.

The dolls remained on the floor lifeless, and as he turned around to join Yukiko upstairs, the dolls both stood up, giggling. Souji turned around and out of fright widened his eyes. The dolls were right behind him, each one holding one of his arms. Not able to move his arms, Souji leaned his body back and allowed the force of falling backwards to give him some form of leverage. As the dolls began to fall with him, he ripped his arms away from the dolls mid motion and kicked the tips of his feet off the ground into a poorly executed back flip that he learned from Chie. With his extremities available, Souji wasn't sure how to permanently dispose of the dolls. Vivid pictures of him and more so Yukiko being harmed by the dolls gave Souji a rush of adrenaline, the vision of an entity splitting from Souji's physical body which led to the manifestation of his former power. He then remembered, _Focus, and the path will be revealed along the darkened road. _

He closed his eyes and heard absolute silence. Wanting, needing his old friend, he mouthed the word.

_Per….so…..na_

Souji opened his eyes and as if he had a sword in his hand, swung diagonally down from right to left and in front of him saw Izanagi dressed in a black robe, slashed at the doll closest to him with his long pole arm. The doll was lifted into the air from the impact and exploded into many black spheres the size of corn kernels. Upon seeing this, the remaining Alice doll stood up and with a blank face, tilted her head. Souji watched her with much attention.

"Mister?" the doll asked.

Souji listened in surprise.

"Can you play with me? it continued. "Will you _die_ for me!?" asking Souji as it rushed him. Souji's eyes never left the face of the doll and was frightened when he saw her angelic face reshape into a masculine face with hanya-demon qualities such as fangs, and horns. He raised his hand in front of his face and closed his eyes. After taking a deep breath, he clenched his fists and threw his hand at an angle to his side.

_Izanagi!_

Who appeared in front of Souji, mimicking his every physical move. With no clouds or other mediums available, a bolt of lightning came crashing down through the ceiling and struck the doll down to the ground. Izanagi faded away and Souji continued to watch the doll as it writhed into a seizure before exploding much like the other doll.

"Yukiko, is the door ready?" he yelled upstairs.

** Meanwhile, at the Yasoinaba Police Department **

"Don't tell Dojima-san, he might get the wrong idea" Yosuke said in concern, not wanting his best friend to be interrogated by his own uncle about why he went "missing" with the Amagi Inn owner.

"Why won't she pick up?" Satonaka Chie rued in concern. She looked over her office desk and saw her boyfriend having no luck as well trying to contact Souji. "This sucks! I know probably nothings' wrong but I hate when no one picks up! It feels weird!" Chie said. Yosuke got up from his chair and walked over to Chie in which she dropped her legs from the table. Yosuke put his hands on her shoulder blades and slowly dragged his finger tips to her shoulders and began to give her a shoulder message. Chie's head immediately dropped back and she sighed in the comfort of Yosuke's hands. "I know Chie, but just think, they're probably doing the same thing we are right now" Yosuke said trying to comfort her, feeling odd about Souji not picking up either.

Chie leaned up in her chair away from Yosuke's hands and turned her chair and looked at Yosuke with a smile. "No no," she said. Yosuke furrowed his brows and looked at her in confusion as she wrapped her index fingers around two of his unoccupied belt loops, pulling him closer between her now open thighs. "You wish we were doing what they're probably doing right now!" she said giggling. She took fistfuls of the front of his shirt and pulled him down in for a passionate kiss.

** Meanwhile, at the Dojima residence **

"So Nanako, has Souji been by the house at all today?" Dojima asked his daughter during dinner, curious as to what his nephew was up to today. "I haven't seen big bro yet today. I hope he's had dinner because there won't be any left here!" she said smiling. "Well, I'm sure he would've eaten with his friends. It's just not like him to not pick up his phone…" Dojima said looking at the house phone, frowning. "Well, if you're done with your homework Nanako you should get ready for bed – I'll do the dishes" he said. Nanako offered her help numerous times before giving up and heading to her room after hugging her father good night.

Dojima got up and collected the dirty dishes, placing them into the sink and began washing once his sleeves were rolled up to his elbows. As the clean, dripping dishes piled up, he heard a thud-like noise in the background and turned the faucet off to listen in closely. For a minute, no other sounds were audible. "Nanako, are you okay!?" he asked loudly so she could hear him. He saw Bamako's head poke from around the corner. "Yeah, why?" she asked. He explained hearing a noise but Nanako couldn't offer any help, not hearing the same noise. She went back to her room and Dojima turned around to face the sink, and as he turned the faucet to the on position, no water was being dispensed. "What the hell…." he muttered.

He got on his knees and opened the cabinet door under the sink to check the plumbing, and was confused that all the pipe work was fine. No leaks, no rotting, the pipes couldn't have been frozen, no explanation for the lack of water that he had spewing from the faucet no more than one minute ago. He closed the door and got up from his kneeling position, and was shocked when he looked into the sink. There were three black droplets directly below the faucet. He placed his finger to the black object and raised it to his nose, not getting any scent. He pressed his thumb and index finger together and could've placed it at the consistency of honey without being as sticky.

He wiped his hands on a dish towel and decided to call the department of public water works in the morning to fix the problem but before he was able to sit down on the couch, he was startled by the sudden event that took place. Dojima turned around and saw a geyser of the honey-like substance flowing up and out where the faucet _was_. The spewing lasted within 10 seconds before it dissipating. All the liquid that was in the kitchen lifted off the floor, the counter, the table tops, separated from the curtains, and coagulated above the sink into a floating ball of transparent blackness. Dojima wondered if this was something his nephew and friends could fix. He refused to disbelieve in the occult after the events of the past. "A shadow?" he asked himself.

The black sphere began to shift and what looked like a face imprint began to appear in the center of the ball. As it pushed its way out to the surface, Dojima saw what looked like a cyan hanya-mask resting on the surface of the sphere. Dojima immediately grabbed his cell phone off the couch and began dialing his nephew but to no surprise, there was no answer. He rushed to the kitchen table and grabbed his holster. With his handgun in hand, he yelled for Nanako to stay in her room no matter what. Dojima took quick aim and shot. His nerves caused the bullet to graze the sphere itself, which absorbed the bullet.

Watching the bullet suspended In the sphere, he took another shot. The bullet escaped the barrel, and in a straight line pierced a horn of the hanya mask, travelled through the sphere and shattered the kitchen window above the sink.

"The mask!" he exclaimed, discovering the mask must be broken or the bullet would get absorbed in one way shape or form. But it was too late. The lips of the mask began to open widely and a demonic laugh echoed through the room. The sphere came away from the sink and hardened to what looked like obsidian. No longer able to see through it, Dojima kept his eyes on it intently. The sphere dropped to the floor and when Dojima thought it was about to shatter into a million pieces, it exploded like a water balloon does. The thin liquid exploded outwards and like a rubber band gathered to a center focal point where what looked like a humanoid figure began to take shape. The black figure continued to laugh as the black substance began to slide off its body slowly pooling at its feet.

Dojima watched as what looked like a naked female human was revealed after the black mess. His face opened wide in fear as he watched the figure raise her hand with her fingers directed to the ceiling. With her hand out in front of her, a black aura began to develop around Dojima, whom at that point feared for his life as the feeling of his body went missing beginning with his toes and working its way up to his chest.

"Hikari…" Dojima whispered, and as the woman snapped her fingers, the black vapor dissipated. At that precise moment, Dojima fell to the ground unconscious. The figure looked around and saw no one else in sight. She hovered to Dojima's barely alive body and noticed he had photos against the wall of him, his daughter and his wife when she was alive. Torn and anguished, the demonic entity screamed as she tore down the photos with Dojima and the other woman leaving gaping black claw marks on the wall behind. With what sounded like a satisfying groan, the woman began to fall into the floor, using it much like the children used the TV sets. When the woman was gone, all that was left was a puddle of black liquid.

Nanako rushed out of her bedroom and found her father lying down beside the black matter and on her knees beside him, cried and cried. In confusion, anger, worry, she ran to the house phone and dialed her brother's cell phone number. She held onto the phone against her ear hard enough to leave an imprint but at this point she didn't care. She held on for 7, 8, 9 rings. Finally, the phone picked up and after a brief moment of silence….

"Big bro! Big bro please pick up I need your help! Daddy needs your help!!!" she wailed into the phone, tears dropping to the floor off her cheeks. No one answered on the other end. "Big bro!" Nanako cried.

"Nanako?"

"Big bro! You have to help us!"

"Nanako, calm down, take a deep breath, and tell me what happened" said the male voice that sounded like Souji.

"Someone attacked daddy and he's not waking up!" Nanako explained to her brother.

"Is anyone else in the house still?" he asked, his concern for his sister rising. His blood began to boil at the thought of anyone hurting Nanako let alone Dojima. "No, it's just me and Daddy now!"

"Okay, Nanako what you're going to do is hang up with me then call an ambulance. Give them your address and tell them you have a man unconscious and needs medical attention. Can you remember that?" he instructed. "Y-yeah.." Nanako said, biting her lip. "After that I want you to run away from the house and go to Kanji's house, it's the closest you understand?

At the house, Nanako nodded and proceeded to hang up with her brother. After she had an ambulance rushing to her house, she looked back at her father regretfully and run out of the house as fast as her legs would carry her to Kanji-kun's house.

**

Meanwhile, outside of Junes

8:43 PM

**

Yukiko was breathing heavily from running with Souji as fast as she could. "Souji…." she panted. "Do you think we were in the other world?" she asked, her chest bobbing up and down. Souji didn't know what to think. So much had happened in the past few hours that he was quite overwhelmed. He reunited with most of his friends and family, reacquired his ability as a persona-user, and gained the ability to use the TVs but wasn't aware of what they did just yet. "I don't think so… we didn't climb through the TV this time Yuki. I just touched it…" he said, remembering how it started before they found themselves in such a strange area.

"It was like…. It was a mirror of this world. People don't exist there, but shadows do" he said, trying to understand it all. "In any case, I need you to do me a favor". Yukiko nodded, wanting to do anything for Souji to help him."We need to stay calm to take care of this. I need you to go to Kanji's house and keep an eye on Nanako while I check the house out".

As much as she didn't like the idea of Souji being alone where something _could_ happen, she would only get in the way without any ability to fight shadows. Agreeing to Souji's plan, she leaned up and kissed him before jogging her way to Kanji's. With Yukiko out of sight, Souji attempted to run the distance to his house to check the place for remnants of shadows or even clues as to what happen to Dojima.

"God I hope Dojima-san's okay.." Souji said, taking a deep breath.


	5. Lux Aeterna: The Justice

CHAPTER 5: THE JUSTICE

* * *

chapter v

THE JUSTICE

**  
November 24th, 2015

Thursday Morning 7:54 AM

St. Masakado Hospital

**

"Daddy!" a young and worried Nanako exclaimed, wrapping her little hands over those of her father, still asleep.

"Doctor I spoke with paramedics at his house and they told me my uncle had no surface wounds, and now you're telling me there's no internal bleeding or ruptures of any sort, no blunt force trauma..." Souji rambled, knowing the possibility that his uncle's wounds were attributed by something supernatural.

"Son, I know how you must feel.. but we have people looking into the situation as well as our most experienced staff here monitoring your uncle around the clock."

"Thank you Dr. Kakashii" Souji said, in slight relief as the doctor exited the room. He grabbed his cousin Nanako by the hand and led her to the large window beside her fathers bed.

"See that lake Nanako?" he pointed.

"We used to take picnics there all the time!" Nanako said through an abundance of sniffles.

"And we'll have more, just give your Dad some time to rest up." he offered her reassurance, hating to see his 'little sister' upset like this.

"That's a promise! But for now, how about I walk you to school and I'll see you when you get home.. I'll be there waiting for you okay?"

She looked up at her big bro with reluctance and simply nodded.

*  
9:01 AM Junes: Food Court

*

"That'll be one-hundred eighty yen please!" the clerk said as she handed Souji a warm doughy pretzel. He paid up front and took the treat to a bench under an umbrella to shield him from the particularly strong UV rays beaming down. His phone went off after his first bite.

_Yuki-uki 3_

He answered the phone in his usual comic manner, but when he heard Yuki barely manage to get "Kanji... it's Kanji-kun" through broken sobs, he put the twisted dough down and tried to get her to rationalize the situation.

"Yuki what exactly is wrong with Kanji? Is he okay?"

"Souji just come to Kanji's place! Please!" was the end of her call. He dropped the twisted dough promptly, pocketed his phone and booked it south of the mall for Kanji's home, figuring Yuki would be there too. All that raced through his head were visions of what could be there waiting for him...

*  
9:22 AM Kanji's House

*

Souji bent over slightly to catch his breath. As he slowly made his way up toe walkway he noticed the front door was broken off the hinges which immediately translated into trouble, causing Souji's heart to skip a beat. He was there for Kanji's sake, but the first thing in his mind was Yuki's safety.

Making his way into the living room, he called out for Yuki, and Kanji.. neither one replied. He walked further into the house, turning the corner to survey the kitchen, but it was quite empty. His hands made fists as he silently climbed his way up the stairs in the foyer, turning into the single hallway. He noticed that of the four doors, two on each side, they were all closed shut.

Quietly, he made not a sound to not alert anyone else that may have been in the house with his friends. He listened for sounds at the first two doors, and could not hear a thing. However at the second set of doors at the end of the hallway, he heard sniffles, and heavy breathing from the door on the left. Souji tried to reinforce himself mentally with everything he had.

_-One.... two...._

He extended his right leg out in front of him hard enough to bust the door open, and the top hinge was ripped from its place in the wall. As the door swung into the room by the bottom hinge, he immediately saw Yuki, on her knees sobbing and holding her phone while looking into the corner. Souji walked into the room prepared.

His eyes widened as he turned the corner of the door. There was a tall figure dressed in black leather standing over a bleeding Kanji, who apparently was out cold. The figure turned around to face Souji, who tried to keep his composure, which was shaken soon after.

The figure's black clothing became to liquefy and run down the length of its body to the floor, revealing himself to be human yet faceless in appearance, and that his body was that of an inhumane amalgamation of animal parts. He was a bipedal creature on the legs of horse, his arms and hands were composed of the necks and heads of snakes respectively.

"Yukiko, get out of here!" Souji hollered as he grabbed his betrothed by the arm but she refused to move out of shock and fear. He shook his head and stood in front of Yukiko with his arms spread side to side as if to protect her.

"Who..... What are you!?" Souji prompted. The figure made a hissing noise before his arms extended and the snake heads bit his chest. He felt the stinging in his chest immediately, but it wasn't severe, and certainly did not feel any continuous burning from venom. With a clenched jaw, he darted for the creature who lifted one of his monstrous legs and kicked Souji in the stomach. The impact of the blow contorted Souji's body and the wall behind him was not strong enough to prevent not only the wall from crumbling, but Souji being knocked off the 2nd floor of the building onto the grassy backyard below.

Yukiko shrieked in fear as one of her friends was critically injured, and her boyfriend was being assaulted in front of her eyes. She crawled to the edge of the floor to see Souji writhing on the grass as the monster jumped from ledge to continue its relentless assault.

Seta Souji found some amount of strength to get out of the way of the chimera's whip like snake arms and was growing quite tired of this dance.

_-One can only hope...._

He thought to himself, praying that his ability to conjure the physical manifestation of his demon ego.

Souji closed his eyes, envisioning his friends in a safe environment. The Amagi Hot Springs, laughing together while sneaking alcohol to a party for the first time.... the first time he laid his hands on Yukiko, having a family in the future..

His eyes were forced wide open and tainted with anger and rage. In a deep, guttural growl, "Izanagi!" escaped his throat.

As he made the motion of a samurai slashing his katana through the air, a phantom dressed in a black robe with a white bandanna materialized with a bladed pole arm, mirroring Souji's body movements.

The phantom's blade cut through one of the arms of the demon with ease, like heated steel through butter. As the snake-like arm flopped and writhed on the grass before disappearing in a cloud of black smoke, the creature's faceless head turned to Souji's direction. In an attempt to dispatch Souji on the spot, Souji raised his arms to the sky then brought them to the side of his waist, hands together forming what looked like the Cancer zodiac sign.

With arms stretched out in front of him with the undersides of his wrists together to form a crooked 'U', his manifestation of power, 'Izanagi' appeared again, mirroring Souji's every movement. The only exception, is that a beam of light appeared from Izanagi's hands, and the horizontal pillar obliterated the monster in an instant.

Breathing heavily, Souji remained in that position. He slowly began to stand up straight but noticed a black sludge stained the grass in front of him in a small pile. It reminded him of how the monsters in the mirror world secreted black liquid or at least solid black matter when destroyed.

The more he pondered about that, the more he knew inside that they were connected.

"Yuki!" he shouted, as if coming out of a daze. "Yuki stay right there I'll be right up!!"

She nodded as she watched him disappeared around the corner of the house and patiently waited beside Kanji for him to enter from the front to retrieve her and Kanji.

When he made it to the room again, he slid to Kanji's side, noticing traces of black fluid on the ground as well as blood staining Kanji's jeans from the knee down.

_-So he must've only hurt his knee...._

"Kanji can you hear me? Are you okay?" Souji asked with worry.

A groggy Kanji mumbled incoherently and rolled over, growling in pain; evident from him trying to grab his knee. Souji sighed in relief when Kanji sat up.

"Senpai... Oh my head..."

*  
Kanji's House: Kitchen 10:42 AM

*

"Are you sure you didn't get a good look at the perp?" asked an officer to Kanji, the home-owner.

"Listen dipshit, I said the room was vandalized as you can obviously see you fucker.. I didn't see him, he knocked me out." said Kanji, quite agitated.

"I saw some dude in black, and before I know it ... I have a sad phone call to the insurance company to make and my friends are taping up a busted knee, what the fuck else do you want me to say?"

The agent nodded and closed his notepad. He looked over at Souji and Yuki who were also finished making their statements to the police department, then left.

Kanji, who had been sitting at the kitchen table with gauze wrapped around his knee and a blanket around his back for an hour, was becoming extremely impatient with the police department. Especially Souji, who was becoming worried about the conversations in the background. Eyewitnesses who claim to have seen a beam of light shoot from the backyard and what looked like snakes and horses. Yuki assured Souji there wasn't anything to be worried about, yet at least.

"No one is going to believe that Souji, rest assured" she said, planting a light kiss on his forehead.

"Senpai, you don't have to explain anything to me. I have a feeling I know what's going on. We've got demons on the run, don't we?" he asked, quietly.

Souji silently nodded, and released a sigh.

"Kanji, we don't have anything to do against demons.. but we can't leave it up to you Souji.. I feel so helpless" Yuki expressed. She ran her hands through her raven black hair and tied it back into a ponytail with a hairpiece given to her by Kanji, who had plenty of accessories laying around.

Kanji simply shook his head in defeat as well.

One who didn't share such defeat was Seta Souji, who wondered if this had anything to do with being able to access the Mirror World, and shadows lurking in there as well. His mind ran countless possibilities of what was happening and how to fix the issue.

"I obviously don't have to tell you, I still have my persona-abilities..."

Kanji grinned and put his hand on Souji's shoulder. "I figured as much. Yuki told me about what happened when you were making a statement."

Souji nodded. "I don't know how comfortable you guys are with the idea, but I think we'll need to find the rest of the gang, and figure out how to get your persona-abilities back too."

Yukiko moved her head as to agree, as well as Kanji.

"Senpai, you know I'll follow you to the end of the earth. Well, at least after I get some dick to fix my house."

Yuki giggled. "Kanji, that's not nice!" she said as she batted Kanji's shoulder with her hand.

"Yeah well, I'm not going to enjoy the 5 years on the phone with the fucking insurance prick today. Why don't we rest up, and try to reach out to Chie and Yosuke and meet somewhere in the morning?"

Souji liked Kanji's plan. "Good idea. Are you going to need a place to stay in the interim?" he asked.

"You can stay at my inn if you need to Kanji-kun" offered the inn owner. She loved having guests that she knew. Kanji quickly accepted the offer. She excused herself from the kitchen while she phoned the inn to make arrangements for Kanji.

"I guess I should pack, I'll get to the inn later after I finish things here. Let me know what the plans are for tomorrow okay? I guess I'm stuck here at least until the cops leave, so I'll call the insurance company now and get it over with".

Souji nodded again in assurance, said goodbye and left with Yukiko shortly after.

*  
Inaba Lake, Bike Path 12:02pm

*

"We're not going to have a lot of peace and quiet after today, you realize that right Yuki?"

She nodded, while walking along the riverbank with her hand entangled in his.

"Yeah, I know... I just can't shake this feeling of helplessness. After Izanami left, we lost our powers of Persona." she said reluctantly.

"If we don't get our powers back, we'll all be watching you from the sidelines..."

She let go of Souji's hand and walked in front of him, wrapping her arms around his sides into a tight hug. Souji reciprocated and attempted to calm her down, but her anxiety of him fighting an array of demons on his own was more frighting than facing death itself.

"I don't want to lose you Souji, not again. Not forever!"

Yukiko Amagi lost her composure. She let a stream of tears fall from her dark brown eyes that he loved to gaze into.

"Shhh, it's okay Yuki. If I have to fight alone, I'll be okay. I have Izanagi still, and Igor said I still have dominance over other Persona".

She found it extremely comforting to feel his hand slowly move up and down the length of her back. It stopped her tears almost in their tracks and as she pulled away from Souji, she looked into the greyness of his eyes and smiled. She loved that about him. How safe he made her feel.

No one else has ever done that to her before.

"Yuki let's go home and rest up for a bit before Nanako comes home. We'll call Chie and Yosuke later tonight, and visit Doujima-san one more time before nightfall."

At this point, Yukiko loved the sound of that.

*  
Doujima Residence 3:11pm

*

Several knocks at the front door went completely unanswered, and so did Nanako's voice when she entered. "Hello? Souji?" she said as she peered into the living room.  
Nanako immediately hushed her voice as she found a sleeping Souji and Yukiko on the couch in the living room. She took her shoes off and slid into her house slippers, and up the stairs she went.

Souji woke up with the sounds of footsteps up into the 2nd floor hallway and hugged Yuki, which caused her to wake up from her nap. "Nanako's home" he said softly.

Yuki smiled and buried her back deeper into Souji's chest, as she let out a soft yawn.  
Souji grabbed the television remote the fell on the floor while they were asleep, and as the picture focused they could hear the audio quite clearly.

It was a bulletin about the attack on Kanji's house.

_"...... this morning, and that appears to have been some sort of blast or other act of vandalism has torn a huge hole in a 2nd floor room in Inaba's own clothing designers house, who goes by the name 'Kanji'. More will be brought to you as we learn more about this story. Reporting live from Inaba, this is Ebihara Ai, Channel 4 News."_

Souji knew a news cast would follow this mornings events but didn't expect Ebihara to be a news girl now. "Uncle Doujima didn't tell me that...." he snickered. "I didn't think she'd have the personality to do that."

Yuki jabbed her elbow back into Souji's side as she turned to face him. "And do you regret not going out with Ebihara?" Souji wasn't sure if she was kidding or being serious, but reassured her that he never had any feelings for her, nor intentions on dating her, let alone never cared for her outside of casual conversation.

"Yuki can I tell you something?" he asked softly.

She stood up off the couch stretching, releasing another yawn.

"I love you, and only you..." he said, which got a smile out of her.  
She leaned over his head and pressed her lips against his. As they parted she giggled and turned around.

"That isn't going to get you any Mr. Seta!"

He sat up and swung his legs off the couch, planting his feet on the rug below.  
She reached for a glass from the pile of clean dishes and filled it half way with water.

"Not yet anyway, we got company!" she said. She sipped from her glass, and nearly spit it out as she turned to face the stair case by the front door. There Nanako was standing, giggling at Yuki's new found dirty humor.

"Yuki you've changed so much since you started dating my brother! You're so casual now!" Nanako said with her face lit up.

Souji leaned back into the couch with a sense of victory, and winked at Yuki who barely caught it.

"Nanako if you have any homework why don't you finish that first. I was thinking the three of us can get something to eat from out on the way to visit Doujima-san one more time tonight".

The little one disappeared up the stairs in a ball of excitement, and Yuki's smile widened at Souji's kindness and brotherly love for Nanako.

"Ne, Souji?" she asked, as she put the now empty glass back into the sink, and made her way into Souji's lap.

"Hm?"

"Aishiteru..."

*  
5:20PM

*

"Oh, my phone!" Souji said as his cell phone rang. Yuki picked it up for him off the kitchen table and brought it to him. "It's Chie!" she said with a smile. Souji took the phone and answered.

"Chie!"

"Souji!"

"What's up lady?" he said casually, as taught by Chie after many nights watching countless "Manly-Man" kung-fu movies with her.

"I heard about what happened early from Kanji, that and I got my hands on the reports... is everyone okay?" she asked out of concern, to which Souji reassured her that all was okay.

"So ... Kanji tells me you still can evoke Persona..."

Souji nodded as if the caller could see him. "Yeah... we've got a lot to talk about. I was thinking about having the six of us meet up at the Junes food court, Yuki, me, you and Yosuke, Kanji and Rise...to talk... about stuff."

"Stuff, you mean the appearance of demons...?" Chie asked.

"Bingo".

"Okay Souji, I'm game. I'll call Rise to tell her whats going on. I'll bring her, and the boys with me to Junes, what time is good for you?"

"Why don't we meet up around noon so I can be back home in time for when Nanako gets home?"

"That sounds perfect. We'll see you tomorrow then."

"Okay. See you then Chie".

"Hey Souji?" she interrupted.

"Yeah?"

"It's good to have you home... you know, like ... with us. We're your family too, and don't you ever think about leaving again. Yukiko was devastated when you left..."

He nodded again with a slight pang of guilt.

"I know, it's good to be back, and I don't plan on leaving again. Get lots of sleep tonight and we'll see you tomorrow!"

"Ja!"

Souji thumbed the 'end' button on his phone, flipped it closed and slid it into his right front pocket.

He looked at Yukiko who was sitting at the kitchen table playing with cards.

"What's that Yuki?" he asked out of curiosity, not having seen this before.

"It's called Solitaire. It's a one player card game I picked up from an American who stayed at the inn awhile back. It's fun! C'mere I'll show you how to play!" she explained, smiling.

Souji got up off the couch and made his way to the chair beside her and got close, as she began to explain the rules and format of a standard game of Solitaire.

After grasping the game quickly he started moving her cards for her to show her that he got it.

"And so now the aces stack up in same suit so this...." he trailed off, grabbed a two of hearts, and placing it on top of the ace of hearts that Yukiko has already placed on the table earlier. Before he could take his hand off the card, she placed her hand on his, and turned to face him.

"You picked up on it really quick Souji..." through a slightly bit lip.

He leaned in to kiss her, the tip of his tongue meeting hers right behind her slightly parted lips.  
Before she became too accelerated, she slowly backed away and through heavier breathing, noted on his ability to pick up on wanting to be kissed too.

Souji was about to follow her lips for another kiss but was reminded by Nanako who was jogging down the stairs that her homework was finished.

Her big brother would never let her down, and so Souji reluctantly stood up and stayed behind Yukiko until they locked up and got outside.

Nanako didn't really understand why her brother insisted on standing behind Yukiko, or why Yuki was giggling... but she was happy enough that she was spending time with them. Spending time with them, going out to eat, and seeing her dad at the hospital all in one night. Although, she wouldn't openly admit it, she would rather her father be home ... this very moment.

*  
St. Masakado Hospital 7:32PM

*

"Daddy, you're awake!" Nanako exclaimed, bursting in through her fathers hospital room door. She ran up to the bedside and hugged her fathers arm, extra careful to avoid the one with the countless IVs in it. He tried to hug her as best as he could, as swollen and tired as he was.

"Souji..." he whispered.

Yuki let Souji's hand go as he walked up to his uncle's side.

"I'm glad you came, I really missed you guys." he spoke in a raspy voice.

"Doujima-san you really don't have to say anything. We know you're hurting.  
Just relax" Souji offered. He rested his hand on his uncles shoulder as Nanako went on and on about school, and her great grades.

".... and then I ended up getting an A in it!!!".

Doujima's smile was as wide as it has been in years since his wife died. That part of his life almost didn't hurt him anymore, seeing what he had now. Knowing that his wife wouldn't want to see him depressed and in agony anymore..

Doujima made a motion with his hand which Souji understood. He got close to his Uncle,  
listened carefully to the quiet whispers...

"Souji, thank you for taking care of everything... I know there is something out there that I can't handle... so I want you to take care of it for me, okay?"

Souji nodded, and wished there was a way to make his uncle less stressed and more comfortable, but all he could do is verbally reassure him.

"Nanako it's about time you guys started going home, it's getting dark out.."  
Doujima suggested. "I'll be here tomorrow, I'm not going anywhere.." he said as he let out a coarse laugh.

His daughter, albeit being 10, was mature beyond her years and understood her fathers wishes, and was simply happy knowing he was now awake and well.

"I'll be good as new before you know it!" said Doujima. "Be safe going home,  
I love you all and I'll see you tomorrow". He sent them off with a wave and a smile, as Souji led Nanako and Yukiko out of the room.

It gave him such happiness to see Souji with a woman like Yuki, especially in a relatively dark time in his life, having lost close family.. he knew that his nephew, whom he treated as a younger brother, would be just fine after all....

* * *

**Comment Time: **

**_- _**_Yes, I do read and thoroughly appreciate comments, and feedback ... and we'll have chapterly comment time to prove it : )_

**Fox-White-Moon: Yes, Souji has retained his ability to control his Persona, and they won't always need TVs to access this mysterious TV world. More about that will be coming up next chapter : ) ... As far as fluff in concerned, I'm trying to keep this rated M without being lemony-porny-sleezy, but there is obvious sexual reference, use your imagination for where I left gaps. I hope I didn't disappoint : )**

**Oathkeepera: I'm glad you enjoyed the intro, character building, as well as my writing style. I'm so sorry I took so long to update. Funny story, my laptop basically shit the bed and I lost my chapter 5 and my storyboard, so gave up but recently started putting a new series of chapters together. I hope they're as good as they sound in my head : )**

**Evil Prince88: I'm glad you like the Souji x Yukiko pairing, because that's the only one I use when I play P4, and Yosuke x Chie just fits so right : )**

**Lord Mordaq Sevillate: I tried to use some humor here and there, I'm glad someone picked up on it : )**

**©2008 ATLUS  
SHIN MEGAMI TENSEI, SMT, and Persona are registered trademarks of Atlus U.S.A., Inc.  
****The plot of Persona: Lux Aeterna belongs to Havoc Wing only to be provided on **


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